Giving up London for Sheffield

Because the law says so! Await link.

Awaiting...

Hi Brin

I have seen two budget figures quoted - in one post you said your budget was £90-000 - £100,000, then in another you talked about looking in areas where it was stamp duty free up to £150,000.

If you can say which is the nearest to your actual budget we will post up potential properties, but that £50 - £60,000 does make a huge difference I'm afraid

If you have the top end of the figures quoted then you should have no problems whatsoever finding somewhere in a nice area. If it is the bottom end, then would you consider properties where there is substantial work needed, as that is probably the only way to get what you want in a decent area, or would you rather go for a bigger house in a less popular area?

Because the law says so! Await link.

Awaiting...

Sorry for delay!

See regulation 5 of The Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 [sI 1999 no. 2083]:

(1) A contractual term which has not been individually negotiated shall be regarded as unfair if, contrary to the requirement of good faith, it causes a significant imbalance in the parties' rights and obligations arising under the contract, to the detriment of the consumer.

(2) A term shall always be regarded as not having been individually negotiated where it has been drafted in advance and the consumer has therefore not been able to influence the substance of the term.

(3) Notwithstanding that a specific term or certain aspects of it in a contract has been individually negotiated, these Regulations shall apply to the rest of a contract if an overall assessment of it indicates that it is a pre-formulated standard contract.

(4) It shall be for any seller or supplier who claims that a term was individually negotiated to show that it was.

(5) Schedule 2 to these Regulations contains an indicative and non-exhaustive list of the terms which may be regarded as unfair.

The fashion shopping in Sheffield is very poor whereas in London it is brilliant and the trains to get to London are rubbish from Sheffield. I'd be prepared to sacrifice this though for Sheffields close proximity to beautiful countryside and cheaper prices in terms of eating out, travel etc. as long as i visit London often enough to get my fix of proper fashion shopping.

that's a load of rubbish. Trains every 30 minutes and takes 2 hours. Great for quiet space to get on with work or whatever.

as an addendum, I'm very sad to say that a regular source of income due to excessive delays has dried up because the railway trains have - dare I say it - are generally now so reliable and punctual possibly also even in the winter with the wrong type of leaves or snow

And would I move back to London - I can think of more good reasons to stay here than to move back there, probably all of which have previously been covered by everyone else. I disagree with comments about Burngreave as there have also been murders in Eccleshall and Netheredge. A friend used to live by Burngreave and never came to any harm so it's really horses for courses. More trees and parks out by Hunters Bar.

Sorry for delay!

See regulation 5 of The Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 [sI 1999 no. 2083]:

 

(1) A contractual term which has not been individually negotiated shall be regarded as unfair if, contrary to the requirement of good faith, it causes a significant imbalance in the parties' rights and obligations arising under the contract, to the detriment of the consumer.

 

 

(2) A term shall always be regarded as not having been individually negotiated where it has been drafted in advance and the consumer has therefore not been able to influence the substance of the term.

 

 

(3) Notwithstanding that a specific term or certain aspects of it in a contract has been individually negotiated, these Regulations shall apply to the rest of a contract if an overall assessment of it indicates that it is a pre-formulated standard contract.

 

 

(4) It shall be for any seller or supplier who claims that a term was individually negotiated to show that it was.

 

 

(5) Schedule 2 to these Regulations contains an indicative and non-exhaustive list of the terms which may be regarded as unfair.

I find it difficult to believe that the contracts regarding shared home ownership are individually negotiated, are you claiming that this one (this clause specifically) was and isn't a pre drafted contract?

With shared ownership schemes, you and the housing association share any rise or fall in the value of the property. When you sell, you will each get your share of the proceeds of sale in proportion to what you own. So, if you own 70 per cent and the housing association 30 per cent, the money raised will be split 70:30.

I think that the OP had just got it confused to be honest.

http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/finding_a_place_to_live/Buying_and_selling/other_ownership_schemes/about_home_ownership_schemes

What happens when a shared ownership property is sold?

 

You may sell your share in a shared ownership property at any time and you will receive your share of any increase in value. However, if you wish to sell, you should inform the Housing Association as the person who buys your property would need to meet the criteria for shared ownership themselves. When you sell the property you will receive your share of any increase in the value of the property. (Please remember the value of your home may go down as well as up).

http://www.charnwood.gov.uk/pages/sharedownership

I find it difficult to believe that the contracts regarding shared home ownership are individually negotiated, are you claiming that this one (this clause specifically) was and isn't a pre drafted contract?

Even though every sale contract is drawn by solicitor acting for V (or L), it's individually negotiated with the solicitor acting for P (or T). Also, some of a Shared Ownership Lease's contents are required by law or so as to comply with requirements prescribed by the Housing Corporation [or its successors].

Hmmm, if the contract starts off as a standard pre drawn one from V (or L) then the legislation you quoted might not apply (unless that particular clause was negotiated).

A term shall always be regarded as not having been individually negotiated where it has been drafted in advance

It certainly seems to be common for other HAs to split the proceeds of any sale proportionally to the % ownership.

If it were the case that the contract did award any profit to the HA, the simple solution would be to buy it outright first (at the market value) and then immediately sell it, they wouldn't be able to effectively steal the profit that way.

I agree. Your citation [A term shall always be regarded as not having been individually negotiated where it has been drafted in advance] could never be read literally- everything in writing is drafted in advance!- so its meaning implies the following addition:

"...irrespective of the individual circumstances and is not capable of individual negotiation to accord with them."

If the HA refuses to negotiate on that term (if it exists) then it makes it impossible for a client to negotiate on that term, which I think is probably the meaning of 'drafted in advance'.

Thanks for the comments - I am intrigued by Norton now.

Back to clean air in Sheffield - this is from where I will be coming from...Clean Air in London’s (CAL’s) analysis of the latest data confirms that London had the highest levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a toxic gas, of any capital city in Europe in 2010. Concentrations of dangerous airborne particles (PM10) are much higher in Beijing than London but levels of NO2 are comparable in the two cities.

(cleanairinlondon.org 26/04/012)

The latest data from Hometrack suggests the market is slowing from the start of 2012, with "buyer registrations and sales... falling... and the underlying trend is one of tightening supply and weakening demand". On average, if a property is marketed at £125,000, buyers are offering £115,625 (92.5%). This doesn't vary that much from one region to another suggesting agents are marketing properties at prices the properties will sell at. With a balanced market typically giving a 95% offer to marketing price, the current market is more of a buyers' than a sellers' market.

With that in mind and for my late night trawling through the forum (another addiction to add to my growing ist of personality disorders) I am beginning to see that there is some sense in approaching estate agents with a mind open to creating a solid relationship with the seller of the property on their books.

If one can come to an arrangement between the two parties - it could be mutually beneficial since it appears that the estate agents are viewed by both parties as the 'enemy'. Whilst I see the use of this industry we are living in hard times so I think it is fair game to try and 'use 'n abuse' them.

I don't want to jeopardise my relationship with any estate agents in Sheffield so I shall hide under anonymity...

So should it go something like this ? : -with the vendor...

- 'I am interersted in this house - would you like me to buy it? - here are some items of concern, what is wrong with that wall is it the damp or just old wallpaper?

If I go for it will you take £1000 off the price? or ' I will give you £1000 for the 3-piece cash in advance in the Dog and Gun' down the road if you drop the your final selling price by £5,000 now.'

On a regional level, the North and South will continue to diverge. The large falls which have already occurred in the north of England, show that affordability levels are lower than in the south of the country. However, bigger price falls are still expected in the northern regions as these are more heavily dependent on the public sector. As public sector cuts start to bite, the forecast is for a localise rise in repossessions, placing further downward pressure on prices in these areas.

http://www.the-negotiator.co.uk//6518616.article

Miles Shipside, commercial director for Rightmove, says: “We’re in a limbo land, where a restricted number of motivated sellers are trying to match themselves up with the similarly restricted number of financially capable buyers.

“In many parts of the country transaction levels are limited to the number of sellers who are willing to price aggressively below the competition and can afford to do deals.”

He adds: “It seems this stalemate can continue indefinitely, until it is broken either by an improvement in upside factors, such as a relaxation of mortgage finance, or by a further market deterioration in employment and a corresponding increase in forced sales at bargain-basement prices.”

"A staggering 90% of people cannot visualise a room differently to how it is presented, which means it is crucial for agents to explain the importance of the presentation of a home to clients. Buying is an emotional, not rational experience" -

I saw this and wondered if this comment is really valid, does it mean to say I would be looking at just the size of the room and it's aspect - apart from the usual stuff (holes in the floor boards, dodgy wiring etc)

The latest data from Hometrack suggests the market is slowing from the start of 2012

, with "buyer registrations and sales... falling... and the underlying trend is one of tightening supply and weakening demand". On average, if a property is marketed at £125,000, buyers are offering £115,625 (92.5%). This doesn't vary that much from one region to another suggesting agents are marketing properties at prices the properties will sell at. With a balanced market typically giving a 95% offer to marketing price, the current market is more of a buyers' than a sellers' market."

Do people think this applies to Sheffield?

"London where there are a reported 70,000* empty properties, but we have seen cases across all major cities. I am staggered that there are so many empty properties in the UK with over 350,000* of these being empty for more than six months, and yet council waiting lists are so long and homelessness is up 17% this year." Source * - Channel 4, The Great British Property Scandal