Buying a home with your partner

Is it safe to buy a home with your partner ?
In April a landmark court case ruled that properties owned by cohabiting couples should be split according to how much financial contribution each made, even if they bought the property in joint names. Londoner Barry Stack, was left with 35 per cent of the home he had shared with his partner Dehra for 10 years. The court based its decision on the fact that Dehra had earned more and contributed more to buying the property.
Jerome from Reef Mortgages said " In any situation and particularly where my clients are not married, I advise that they should have a document drawn up setting out what proportion of the property belongs to whom. This can easily be arranged at the same time as a purchase or if nothing already exists, on remortgage of the property. Couples who fail to do this risk heartache and major expense in the future
www.you-can-mortgage.co.uk

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Buying overseas Property

BUYING OVERSEAS PROPERTIES



Try a remortgage for buying your overseas property
As the number of Britons owing property abroad continues to escalate, consumer group Which? has reminded prospective buyers that there are many pitfalls to buying overseas.
Second homes overseas are becoming increasingly popular among UK residents, with more than 250,000 people owning a home abroad in 2003/04.
However, Jeremy Davis, author of Buying Property Abroad, a new book offering advice to people considering buying abroad is urging people to realise what a major financial commitment it can be.
Estate agents, lawyers and property management companies all have a vested interest in customers signing on the dotted line - regardless of whether the property is appropriate or affordable, so buyers should take care to make their own investigations.
Many potential owners fail to commission the appropriate property surveys, apply for the proper planning permissions or take legal advice in order to save money, even though this can cause no end of problems further down the line.
Jeremy Davis said: "The TV shows that have helped fuel our obsession with overseas property make buying abroad look easy. But in reality finding, purchasing and owning overseas can be a time-consuming business, and turning a foreign property into a successful investment can be even more of a struggle."
"Get all this right and you could have a wonderful new asset which gives you and your family enormous enjoyment over the years, and greater wealth in the long run. Get it wrong and you could be risking a good chunk of your future security on a pipe dream."
The top 10 pitfalls of overseas property buying are given as:
Overstretching your finances. It's easy to feel left out if you don't have a fabulous second home somewhere. But don't jump on the bandwagon unless you're sure why you're doing it, and that you can afford it - especially if you're securing it against your UK home.
Buying sight unseen. If you buy an overseas property without ever having seen it - and surprising numbers of people do -you've only got yourself to blame if it ends up being a disaster.
Buying without a lawyer. Lawyers may seem to make the process complicated, but the work they do is vital to protect your best interests - for example telling you whether the seller has the legal right to sell. Pay extra for one who speaks good English and is qualified in UK and foreign law.
Failing to check credentials. Is the seller really the property owner? Is your estate agent really a qualified agent, and are they bonded to hold a deposit on your behalf? What guarantees are there if the developer goes bust?
Putting the deposit down too early. Don't assume that your deposit is returnable, even if it is described as a 'reservation' deposit. In most countries paying a deposit commits you to the purchase, so don't hand over any money - even to a third party - unless you are sure you want to buy.
Choosing on the basis of price. It may be tempting to buy a property for the price of a second hand car, but perhaps the reason it's so cheap is that nobody else wants it.
Ignoring the ongoing costs. Even if you hardly use it, keeping an overseas property ticking over costs money. Insurance, maintenance, property management fees, service charges and taxes all add up, so work all this out in advance.
Relying on budget airlines. Cheap flights have opened up huge tracts of Europe to property hunters, but don't assume they will always be there. Ask yourself what would happen to your tourist rentals if routes to the little local airport disappeared.
Doing things on the cheap. If you want to avoid creating a white elephant, don't cut corners when renovating. If you can't afford the architects, surveyors and craftspeople to bring out your property's potential, look for a different one.
Forgetting your heirs. If you want control over how your overseas property is dealt with on your death - and thus avoid the restrictive inheritance rules in place in many foreign countries - you need to make a will. You may even need to make two - one here, and one there.
Author: Andy Marshall
As the number of Britons owing property abroad continues to escalate, consumer group Which? has reminded prospective buyers that there are many pitfalls to buying overseas but investments can goive good returns.
Published on 21/6/2006.

Reef Financial Services can help by providing a broker to give remortgage advice or by providing advice on overses mortgages. Get expert hel, fill in the form at www. you-can-remortgage.co.uk or call 01202 331713.

Can you use your house as a Pension?

Pension Scheme Investments : Can you use your house as a pension?

Pension Scheme Investments : Can you use your house as a pension?
The Finance Bill has introduced final regulations covering pension scheme investments in residential property and chattels. These were to be permitted as direct investments until the Chancellor ruined everyone’s day in the Pre Budget Report. The Bill sets a range of tax charges that effectively ban these investments.

Permitted investments :
Commercial property-As per pre A day regulations.

Hotels. Including ownership of part or all the hotel, provided not occupied by a member or connected person, or they have a right to occupy.

Student accommodation (e.g. hall of residence, but not flats/houses.)
Care homes or prisons.

Purchase of land and development or residential property, or conversion of a building to residential, providing the pension scheme disposes of the property before the development or conversion is complete.

The residential element of a commercial property, provided itr is not occupied by a pension scheme or a connected person. E.g. A shop with flat above, where the shop and flat are let to the shopkeeper.

Residential elements of a commercial property occupied by an employee as a condition of employment (provided the employee is not a member of the pension scheme or a connected person).

Investment grade gold bullion.

Residential property or chattels, unit trusts, investment trusts or OEICs subject to indirect investment rules.

Real Estate Investment Trusts (due for introduction in 2007).

Other vehicles investing in residential property or chattels- known as Genuinely Diverse Commercial Vehicles.

Any investments held in taxable property before 6 April 2006 which were allowable at that time can continue to be held provided there is no expenditure by the pension scheme on improvements.

The 50% borrowing rule for post A day investment has not changed.

Other investments are likely to incur tax charges . these charges are very high and make pension scheme investment in taxable property unfeasible.

To sum up, there remain some good opportunities for pension investments such as shops with flats above and residential property development as well as pooled vehicles and syndicates; although nowhere near what was originally mooted by the government.

For information on residential and commercial mortgages go to www.you-can-mortgage.co.uk or telephone 01022 331713

This article is based on the authors interpretation and understanding of the regulations published on 24 March 2006 which are subject to change

Author: Jerome Thompson Cert PFS

First Time Buyers Budget News

First Time Buyers Budget News


Starting to climb the property ladder remains a tough prospect for most first time buyers. The average cost of a first home in Britain today is £135,742; over six times average wage. This has left buyers taking on larger mortgages than at any time in history and the average house buyer must now save £15, 200 if they are to fund a 10% deposit even before additional costs, such as solicitors fees are taken into account.
Recently, the chancellor had an opportunity to give a helping hand to first time buyers during the recent budget but unfortunately the derisory £5,000 increase in the stamp duty threshold only takes the limit to £125,000.
Stamp duty will be charged at one per cent on properties between 125,000 and 250.000m and goes up to three percent between 250,000 and £500,000 and four percent for most expensive properties
However one bit of good news, further cash has been pledged by the chancellor to boost shared ownership schemes, helping those on lower and middle incomes on to the property ladder. In some schemes buyers have to raise only 25 % of a property’s value through a mortgage, while a Government backed scheme funds the rest. Almost £4 billion has been put into such schemes.
The really good news for first time buyers is that interest rates are still around their lowest levels for more than 30 years and not being part of a chain, means there is a good possibility of negotiating a lower price from the home seller.
For more information on buying a home, go to www.you-can-mortgage.co.uk

Girls get help with property

PARENTS are far more likely to help their daughters get on to the property ladder

Girls receive an average of 72 per cent more financial help from their parents than boys when it comes to buying their first home, according to the Co-operative Bank receiving an average of £7,240 towards getting on to the property ladder.

Overall, 61 per cent of daughters were given money towards their deposit, compared with 44 per cent of sons. Parental bias towards helping girls get on to the property ladder does not stop with financial assistance, with 31 per cent of people insisting on approving the area their daughter wanted to buy in, compared with fewer than two out of ten parents of sons.

Across both sexes, just under half of people who had help from their parents in buying a home were given money towards a deposit, 46 per cent had help buying furniture, and 21 per cent were given money towards financing DIY projects.

Nearly three-quarters of first-time buyers said they thought it would have taken them at least two years more to buy their own property without help from their parents, while others thought it would have taken at least an extra five years.

Four-fifths of parents who helped their children get on to the property ladder did not expect to be paid back, although 10 per cent expected the money to be repaid in full and 2 per cent even wanted a share in any profits made through the property purchase