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As the BBC move out, Shepherd's Bush switches to a new programme
As Aunty leaves the Bush the borough seizes the opportunity to create a proper neighbourhood.
Spotlight on Camden Town
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Revealed: from Reading to Redhill – the top 20 commuter stations
Choose your route. Our exclusive property buyers’ guide shows travel times, costs and house prices.
My design London - Russell Norman
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Find a rated tradesman
Want to add value to your property, make your house a home, or sell your place fast? With 1,000s of tradesmen nationwide, rated and recommended by previous customers, this is the smart way to find a reputable tradesman.
Buy of the week: Camden Town
This two-bedroom flat has a pretty park on its doorstep, while buzzing Camden Town is only 10 minutes’ walk away. Big sash windows and high ceilings give a spacious feel and there’s a private garden with a studio/home office (£525,000).
Swap of the week: Willersey, Glouc
This little Cotswolds beauty is just across the road from the village green and duck pond. For £530,000 you get beams, exposed stone walls and an open fireplace, plus four bedrooms, a useful attic room and lush gardens to enjoy.
Life-changer: Trescowe, Cornwall
For a project brimming with potential, what about this coastal home, yours for £545,000? The family space includes six bedrooms, while its collection of outbuildings overlooking an acre of gardens could become income-generating holiday lets.
Spotlight on Camden Town
The shops and markets clustered around the high street and canal make Camden one of the most colourful of London's neighbourhoods. The area's period homes and loft-style apartments attract a mix of homebuyers.
Property search
We can’t see the point of a survey
Our lawyer, Fiona McNulty answers your questions
© Malcolm Willett (www.willett-ink.co.uk)
A Yes, it is up to you to decide whether you instruct a surveyor but your solicitor is giving you the correct advice. A solicitor who does not advise his client in this way could be in breach of his duty of care to them.
You should commission a survey just as soon as your offer is accepted by the seller so that the results of the survey are known prior to exchange of contracts because the rule of caveat emptor or "buyer beware" places on you the burden of discovering any defects in the property that may not be apparent to you when you inspect the property yourself.
You could have a Homebuyer Survey and Valuation or a full structural survey but as the property you are buying is listed and by a river you require a full structural survey in order to reveal any major structural defects, the value of the property in relation to the purchase price, any remedial work or structural work that may be required, third party or overriding interests and confirmation of the boundaries.
Importantly, you may be able to use the results of the survey to negotiate a reduction in price, or the survey may reveal matters that your solicitor will need to investigate, such as listed building issues or the defects in the property may be so serious, and the cost of remedial works so great, that you withdraw from the transaction altogether.
What's your problem?
If you have a question for Fiona McNulty, email legalsolutions@standard.co.uk. We regret that questions cannot be answered individually.
Fiona is a partner in the property team at Thring Townsend Lee & Pembertons Solicitors www.ttuk.com.
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