council consent to ex council house sale

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redtaped

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I am in the process of selling my council house but the council wont grant consent to sale unless I can prove I have 'alternative accommodation'.According to them this means my name on a house or evidence of deposit paid. My boyfriend has a house but solicitor advises he is liable for gift tax(thousands) if he puts my name on house and even if we were married the bank wouldnt agree to my name going on since we wouldnt qualify for joint mortgage(income too low)Aparently a roof over my head is not enough.

The council are holding up the sale and we are completely tied up. HELP PlEASE.
 
"My boyfriend has a house but solicitor advises he is liable for gift tax(thousands) if he puts my name on house"

Possibly true if he makes a gift to you. Not true if you can buy his half share; and I assume that you would be able to do so with the sale proceeds of your present house.

"and even if we were married the bank wouldnt agree to my name going on since we wouldnt qualify for joint mortgage(income too low)"

This does not sound right. Did the bank not already give a mortgage based solely on your boyfriend's income? Getting one more person liable for repayment can only improve their situation, surely.

"Apparently a roof over my head is not enough"

Quite right too. The Local Authority presumably sold this house to you (or your family) under a Tenant Purchase scheme. Their policy is to help people to move from being tenants to being owners. They are perfectly entitled to view your proposed move - from being an owner to being a lodger - as contravening their housing policy and possibly as something that might in the future see you back on their housing list.

I am not trying to be mean or hard about this - but the rules are there for a reason, not simply to throw obstacles in your path. I think that you should give some further thought to this whole thing.

Also, take independent legal advice before putting your future financial eggs into your boyfriend's basket...........
 
your solicitor should be able to draw up a deed of trust which says that he owns more of the house and therfore there will be no gift for tax purpose. The trust would say that he owns 100 % of the present value of the property. You would then only benefit should the property rise in value. You could also say buy a 5% interest in the property or even 1% & and again there would be no gift. Your name could go on the deeds or the deed of trust could stand alone as proof of your interest in the property ...no need to change title deeds.
 
Hi, I was on the other end of that predicament a few years ago. We were buying an ex council house off someone who had bought it under a tenant purchase scheme.

ABSOLUTE NIGHTMARE.

Basically we had to render ourswelves homeless beofre they would let us buy the house. We had to sell out other house, which was the plan anyway. Move out, move into temporary accomodation. Show the Council a contract of sale of the old house and then they issued consent to sale of the ex council house.

Because we werent FTB they seen us as potential investors and wouldnt let us buy the house until we had no where to live.

OP if you do get a buyer for your house alternative accomodation isnt enough. The buyer of your house must be FTB's or not have any other property. I have head that this varies from COuncil to COuncil, so check it out.

Good luck
 
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