Featured
on BBC Local Radio
 Featured
in the Dunn & Bradstreet Business
Directory  As Seen in Regional and National Press
Last Updated Discount
Auction
|
Public Sales More information
and full contact details for all the following sales are
available in the database - just type in the name of the auctioneer
of your choice into the search facility. If you are a member
of GAUK please note that the following information
is available in the news section as soon as we get it Listings now on line News Property Market Update Housing market activity is down 30%, compared with this time last year (RICS)The buy-to-let market has come to a standstill due to rising interest rates (RICS) House prices fell 0.6% in May, with annual house price inflation down to 5.7% for the 12 months to May 2005 (down from 7.8% in April); this is lowest since 2001 (Halifax) Some risks remain, but housing market set for soft landing Radioactive waste sites named The dozen UK locations short-listed as possible sites for a deep underground radioactive waste depository have been named after most were kept secret for 15 years. Five of the sites are in Scotland and seven in England. Two of the locations were already known, Sellafield and Dounreay, both of which are existing nuclear industry or research complexes. In 1997, the outgoing Conservative government refused permission for an underground Rock Characterisation Facility at Sellafield, which was planned as the precursor to an intermediate-level radioactive waste repository there. Two of the candidate sites were close to British Nuclear Fuel’s Sellafield nuclear complex in Cumbria. The naming of the 12 sites by radioactive waste agency Nirex follows requests for their disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act. The list includes two uninhabited Scottish islands and two undersea locations (these would have required access from Hunterston on the west coast of Scotland or Redcar on the north Yorkshire coast). The full list is as follows: * Dounreay, Caithness The UK currently has no final resting place for either intermediate or high-level radioactive waste and ministers have stated that finding a suitable repository will be a prerequisite if ultimately the government decides a new-build civil nuclear power programme is required. The government is not due to consider a new site selection process until 2007/8. Unlike the controversial exercise in the 1970s and 1980s, the hunt will be on for a location capable of taking both intermediate and high-level waste. Not all of the sites originally assessed as suitable for an intermediate-level depository will satisfy the requirements for a facility also taking high-level waste. In addition, new concerns about rising sea levels could rule out some of the original short-listed sites in any second attempt to find a repository location. However, Nirex has acknowledged that "sites considered suitable previously on geological grounds could be considered suitable in a future site selection process." Will you lose £' thousands in buying property abroad? When buying an overseas property, you'll eventually have to pay a deposit, staged payments and/or the full purchase price. And during this process, you'll be required to convert your British Pounds to the currency of the country you're buying in. Since the exchange process is simply one tiny aspect of the entire transaction, many buyers fail to give it solid attention and make a fundamental mistake. Most buyers understand that the price of currency fluctuates second by second as it gets traded on the currency market floor, and they also realise that banks add on a 2-5% profit margin when selling the currency to the end-user (you), HOWEVER what they don't realise is that there are ways to purchase currency at a far more competitive rate. "To save £1,000's on your currency exchange and transfer charges call a Currency Exchange Specialist. They will be able to call the market trading floors on your behalf and negotiate a far better offer than provided by your high street bank!" Consider a case study comparing bank rates to a currency specialist: "Last year Simon decided that it was time to live his dream and create a new life in the sun. The initial payment on his property was €163,575 and if he used a high street bank rather than a currency specialist he would have lost €2,504 . His savings has paid for a large portion of his white goods and the occasional trip back to the UK ." Furthermore, Currency Exchange Specialist can help you to secure a rate of exchange today for a purchase in the future so that your budget is fixed rather than going up and down according to the exchange rates. For example, you don't want this to happen to you: 'A few summers ago, Mr and Mrs Streeter put a purchase offer on a house in America for $300,000. If they negotiated their needs with a currency specialist they could have secured a rate to enable them to pay £190,524. Instead of contacting a specialist and securing a fixed rate, Mr and Mrs Streeter waited until their completion to exchange currency. The transfer took place 4 weeks after they decided to purchase. And in those 4 weeks, the cost went up to £197,628. The Streeter's lost £7,104" In order to avoid the mistake that overseas buyers fall prey to by blindly accepting the rates quoted by their bank or failing to secure a rate now for a purchase in the future, consider contacting a currency specialist. By doing so you'll have the following options available to you: 1: Buy A Lump Sum of Currency Needed Now (or soon) If you're buying a property overseas soon and need to make a lump sum payment such as a deposit or a full-payment, this is a good option to consider. These are called ‘Spots,' and allow you to purchase and transfer money to your overseas bank or financial institution. 2: Order Currency for a Later Date at a Fixed Rate This option is fantastic for property buyers that have staged payments (or are paying for a new build in installments) and want to ensure against an unexpected changes (in either direction) in the price of your currency. This is especially handy if you need to work to a budget. The price that you were quoted for your property on a particular day will certainly be different a few months (and even days) later. The last thing that you want to do is to pay £10,000 extra pounds because you didn't secure a rate! These contracts are called ‘Forwards' as they allow you set a rate forward into the future. 3: Order Currency when it hits a Rate that you designate This option is called a ‘Limit Order' and is for people that have no specific time restraints or requirements. It allows you to designate a rate that you're willing to wait for and when the currency hits your preferential amount, the currency is purchased for you. This allows you to save money and use fluctuations to your advantage 4: Safeguard against Adverse Fluctuations Finally, you also have the ability to put a spread between the rate you most want and a ceiling that you don't want the rate to go over. This allows you to have quite a bit of control over your currency. Now that you're informed, you won't make the same mistake that many overseas buyers are making and lose money on your currency exchange and transfer service! Legal Procedures in France (By Croft Baker & Co) (New Property) 1. Introduction This summary is intended to give a broad outline to the first-time buyer of a residential property in France. In the space available it is not possible to provide reasoned recommendations nor do we seek to oust the functions of a legal adviser. We have concentrated on the position of an individual purchaser of a freehold self-contained unit (villa or flat) and specialist legal advice, outside the scope of this summary, is required for the purchase of land for development, purchase with mortgage finance, purchase of a leasehold property, mobile home or time-share accommodation and any type of purchase by a company. Slightly different considerations apply in the case of a re-sale property for which another leaflet is available. 2. Lawyers and Legal Advice All aspects of conveyancing are carried out by a "Notaire" (Notary). The same Notary commonly acts for both parties but purchasers can insist on appointing their own Notary which will not increase the total fees payable. Relatively few Notaries speak English. 3. Controls There are no restrictions or special procedures on the transfer of capital imposed either by UK or French regulations. The Deed of Conveyance must be executed before a Notary in France but either or both parties can appoint an Attorney to act for them. 4. Procedural Stages (a) General All stages will involve understanding or signing documents in French. Ask for or obtain written translations, particularly before signing any document. A 2000 law specifies that all sales of residential properties are subject to a 7 day cooling off period. Sales of unfinished development properties (Ventes en future l'état d'achèvement) are the subject of rigorous legislative provisions for the protection of purchasers. Only your own independent legal adviser is likely to be able to ensure that a developer is complying with the detailed regulations. All payments must be made to a Notaire or guarantor. Development will usually be through the medium of a development company specific to the development in question (usually a "Société Civile Immobilière"), involve making stage payments and must involve one of various forms of completion guarantee. A 1979 law protects, interalia, purchasers of real property. Every purchaser must state whether or not he requires finance and, if not, must waive his statutory protection by handwritten statement. If he does require finance he must identify the amount needed and the name of the intended lender. The loan application must be lodged within 10 days of the date of the Reservation Contract. A resulting offer of advance from a French-based lender cannot be accepted prior to 10 days from receipt and should be accepted within 45 days from the date of the Reservation Contract. Copies of the application and the accepted offer must be sent to the Vendor. A rejection of finance entitles the purchaser to withdraw from the Contract and obtain the return of his deposit. (b) From Decision to Buy to Legal Commitment (i) Reservation Developers require buyers to sign a Reservation Contract against the payment of a deposit of 2% or 5% depending on the time-scale to completion. This deposit is returnable under restricted circumstances. A Reservation Contract is not a binding commitment to purchase but not proceeding to purchase, except on statutory grounds, will result in loss of the deposit. (ii) Legal completion (Acte de Vente) At any time after foundation stage a Developer may seek payment of up to 30% of the total price. The demand for payment will come from a Notaire and will be accompanied by: - a draft of the Deed of Sale (Acte de Vente) - a copy of the Co-ownership Regulations (Règlement de Copropriété) in the case of a flat - an abridged specification and plans - a demand for payment of the Notaire's fees and costs. You must make the payment within 30 days of receipt of the above set of documents. The Co-ownership Regulations set out in full detail the legal basis of the Development as a whole. They cannot be modified except by a formal resolution of the owners. The Deed of Sale sets out in full detail the precise terms on which you are buying and recites, interalia, the three essential guarantees, first, of completion, second, for patent defects and, third, for latent defects. The original Deed of Sale remains with the Notary. Title consists an official copy (Expédition). Buyers must have their Official Copy registered at the relevant Land Registry in order to be able to re-sell at a later date. A Notary will normally do this as a matter of course. The time taken to complete registration can be anything from 1 to 6 months. (iii) Physical completion The penultimate stage payment is always Practical Completion, as certified by the Supervising Architect. You are strongly recommended to make a personal inspection to satisfy yourself that the villa or apartment has been constructed and finished according to specification following notification of this stage. Specification defects must be notified to the Developer in writing within one month of hand-over and patent defects within six months of handover. Legally, you are not entitled to withhold any funds to cover patent or latent defects, although it is lawful to lodge funds with a third party. Latest defects liability lasts for 10 years and the developer must provide insurance cover for this. (c) Incidental Costs These are payable wholly by the buyer and amount to about 3% of the purchase price. They include: (i) VAT usually included in the price of new property and involves exemption from Stamp Duty (Droits d'enregistrement) (ii) Notarial fees (iii) Land Registry fees Where translations are obtained, incidental costs may be higher. 5. Ownership You are legally bound by any condominium rules applicable to your property as set out in the Règlement de Copropriété (Apartments) or Cahier des Charges (Villa Estate). During your ownership you will have to pay for: (a) Maintenance and repairs as and when they arise and, in the case of an apartment or estate villa, service charges; (b) all or some of gas, water, electricity and telephone charges, domestic insurance; (c) municipal taxes (rates) and income tax (if you let your property). Open a local bank account to be able to meet these payments promptly. 6. Re-Sale If you use a French Agent (Agent immobilier) to find a buyer make sure he is properly licensed. He is only allowed to act if he holds a written authority. If you re-sell a property originally purchased before physical completion within 5 years after first occupation you will suffer a deduction of 18.60% VAT on the gross proceeds of sale, but off-settable against the VAT element in your original purchase price. Most incidental expenses are payable by the buyer but a re-sale may give rise to French Capital Gains Tax (Taxe de Plus-Value). The sale is only tax-free after 15 years of ownership. This complex tax reduces to allow for the length of time the property is owned (tapering relief). The notaire will calculate the tax due and, unless there is no tax due, an approved tax representative will have to be appointed to deal with the Tax Office. Your ultimate net capital profit on sale will also be liable for UK Capital Gains Tax if you are a UK resident but a double tax treaty ensures that you are not taxed twice on the same gain.
The Positive Club "The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will. " -- Vincent T. Lombardi "You don't have to change that much for it to make a great deal of difference. A few simple disciplines can have a major impact on how your life works out in the next 90 days, let alone in the next 12 months or the next 3 years. " --Jim Rohn Remember
that if you are a HPI member that the database is constantly
changing so keep coming back for information about the latest
sales, also use the news and members' forum.
If you are not already a member of Hot Property Investor and which to gain access to the huge searchable database then please click here: http://www.hotpropertyinvestor.com and hit the join button for a choice of subscription options. There are hundreds of auction houses listed, 1,000s of sales a week. Kind regards |
Property
