Owning your own home

I've done so already. However this forum always amazes me with it's diversity of info and experience

@chrisbmx116 @Prole. Forest Gate is the new Leyton(stone). We were looking in E10 and E11 for a while before seeing what was just over the border in E7. The answer is much more affordable housing, more green space, better curries, very good transport links and come 2018, Crossrail and presumably a jump in house prices. Maybe a bit more crime and that for the time being, but that's what they would have said about Leyton a couple of years ago.

2018? I don't think I can wait that long for expensive pizza and craft beer.

Craft beer's already there, the Forest Tavern at the station. Good pizza might be a more difficult prospect though. There's Franco Manca at Westfield, a 4 minute cycle away. But then you're eating pizza at Westfield.

@tommmmmmm a few folk I know were talking about moving there too... if I miss the boat on Walthamstow maybe its an option...

The Walthamstow ship has sailed long ago I think. There was a three bed Warner flat listed for £325k a couple of months ago that we were interested in, but had already been taken off the market. Apparently there was on open house, four or five offers made that day including a cash offer of £380k, but the vendor took it off the market because he wanted £400k. It's ridiculous there, that was about half a mile from Blackhorse Road station, not even in the 'Village' which I don't think is that great anyway, having lived there for six months.

We're also a 4 min ride from Franco Manca in Westfield. They do takeaway and I've been developing a special cycling angle to transport them home as flat as possible. Crate is not too much further away mind.

Hi forum! Gosh, been a while. Anyway, I'm doing a shared ownership resale and it's all going swimmingly- except that I've just found out I can't used the solicitors I had lined up (recommended by mschris and dublinkevin) as the vendor's using them!
Anyone have a recommendation of a solicitors with experience of shared ownership? Your man at Gisby Harris hasn't replied to my request for a quote :(
Thanks all

I used Helen Wyles at Clark Marshall Associates for our shared ownership property.

Was she any good?

Yep. Really helpful and knowledgeable. Easy to talk to and get in touch with when needed.

Awesome, emailed, thank you!

Any other recommendations will be gratefully received :)

Weird that Gisby Harrison didn't get back to you, I emailed on a Saturday morning and had a reply by 10am on Monday and the documents arrive on Tuesday.

Where and what is the place you're getting?

Mortgage approved yesterday! Precisely 1 month from the first SMS acknowledging receipt of the application.

Bloody hell, that's a joke. The seller must be pretty tolerant, I didn't realise how lucky we'd been! Hopefully it's taken so long everything else is in place.

And congratulations!

Camberwell, one bed in a lovely building, 2 1/2 yrs old. I'm most excited about the boiler- it's a heat exchange with underfloor heating and apparently very efficient.
Will try GH again.

Give them a call if you can't get them on email. Martin is very helpful in the phone as well.

Righty-ho, will do! Gotta get a solicitor sorted ASAP

Also: check out the insanely inarticulate trying-too-hard auto reply I received from one firm:

Thank you for your email/telephone call. Due to the very high workload we are experiencing at the moment, and in order that we can concentrate on ensuring that all our clients receive, what we hope is our normal high standard of service, please be aware, that whilst your email/telephone call may not be immediately acknowledged, the same is being dealt with.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, we shall endeavour to respond to your email/telephone call as quickly as possible.

Death by commas.

I wouldn't withstand that foregoing if I were you. Find a solicitor who speaks English instead.

I never got nuffink from dem gibbon harrisy cru neither.

Not that it matters right now.

Any first time buyers looking at ex-local authority flats, be aware that most lenders don't want to lend out against what they call 'deck access' properties. That's the communal walkway type thing, regardless of whether it's a high rise surrounded by 500 crack dens or a smart privately owned cluster of 12 flats in a posh street.
Moronic as most ex council flats are far better built that the dodgy flat 'conversions' cobbled into Victorian terraces, which I would avoid like the plague.

Bob Bentley in Walthamstow was a very good solicitor in my experience, and he was good for a friend too.

Oh, and for anyone looking for a roofer in the East, these guys were good:

http://www.architecturalroofingltd.co.uk/

They possibly aren't the cheapest, but they fully invoice you, are VAT registered, and likely pay tax (if you care about that). Good quality workmanship, and it certainly beats the tinker that Waltham Council recommended...

Planning application submitted.
8 week consultation period takes us to beginning of December
then another 8 weeks for them to make a decision takes us to the end of Feb.

All going well we could be underway by March.