As a potential first time buyer, I was looking at a house which is for sale to use as my principal residence.
It is a three storey terraced house with a basement. However, the basement has been converted into a separate self-contained property, with separate deeds for this basement property.
The builder who converted it is the owner of both the house and basement property and is selling them at a discount because he has found them difficult to sell in their current state. No-one wants the basement flat as it's tiny, and he seems to have put off families from purchasing the main house because they don't want someone living in their basement!
So I would possibly be interested in buying as he's offering a discount on the total price if both properties are purchased by the same buyer. I'd be interested in purchasing both, with the intention of knocking it back into one house with its own basement i.e.one property with one set of deeds again.
My questions are:-
a) Is there a certain amount of time in which to get the property physically put back into one property, and also to get the deeds back into one set of deeds, so that in many years time when I resold it could not be said that at one time I had both a primary residence, and one investment property. If someone has a primary residence and an investment, then CGT tax would be due on the investment property. Neither property would be rented out whilst it was being changed back to one property.
b) Is it difficult/expensive for a solicitor to have the deeds for such a house/basement to have the deeds for each property made back into one set of deeds?
c) Any other hints/tips I should be aware of about such a situation...?
Thanks for any help/advice!
Becca
It is a three storey terraced house with a basement. However, the basement has been converted into a separate self-contained property, with separate deeds for this basement property.
The builder who converted it is the owner of both the house and basement property and is selling them at a discount because he has found them difficult to sell in their current state. No-one wants the basement flat as it's tiny, and he seems to have put off families from purchasing the main house because they don't want someone living in their basement!
So I would possibly be interested in buying as he's offering a discount on the total price if both properties are purchased by the same buyer. I'd be interested in purchasing both, with the intention of knocking it back into one house with its own basement i.e.one property with one set of deeds again.
My questions are:-
a) Is there a certain amount of time in which to get the property physically put back into one property, and also to get the deeds back into one set of deeds, so that in many years time when I resold it could not be said that at one time I had both a primary residence, and one investment property. If someone has a primary residence and an investment, then CGT tax would be due on the investment property. Neither property would be rented out whilst it was being changed back to one property.
b) Is it difficult/expensive for a solicitor to have the deeds for such a house/basement to have the deeds for each property made back into one set of deeds?
c) Any other hints/tips I should be aware of about such a situation...?
Thanks for any help/advice!
Becca