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Hello, I'm after a bit of advice on a conveyencing issue please.
I purchased a student BTL property in Manchester in 2014, in an area where there is an Article 4 Direction. We were told at the time that the property had only had students in since 2011, when the directive came in, so we have rented it out to students as a small HMO since then.
I am now looking to sell and need to prove to the purchases that it can be a C4 use house so am using the same solicitors we purchased through, but have just been told by the solicitors
"The property was empty when you purchased and you bought with a Buy To Let Mortgage Offer. I do not understand why you are asking for copy Tenancy Agreements when the property was vacant. You would not need a Certificate of Lawful use to let out a residential property on a shorthold tenancy agreement only if you were to alter the property into a HMO (ie bedsits)." Basically they have nothing on file to prove rental to students since 2011.
Should the solicitors have done further enquiries to ascertain previous tenancy agreements? I'm assuming it would have shown up in the local searches that there was an Article 4 Direction?
It was our first student BTL so we probably never informed the sols that we were wanting to rent to students, and I don't think we were asked, but are now left in a position where we have no proof that it can be used as a small HMO....
Does anyone have any experience/advice on this?
Many thanks.
I purchased a student BTL property in Manchester in 2014, in an area where there is an Article 4 Direction. We were told at the time that the property had only had students in since 2011, when the directive came in, so we have rented it out to students as a small HMO since then.
I am now looking to sell and need to prove to the purchases that it can be a C4 use house so am using the same solicitors we purchased through, but have just been told by the solicitors
"The property was empty when you purchased and you bought with a Buy To Let Mortgage Offer. I do not understand why you are asking for copy Tenancy Agreements when the property was vacant. You would not need a Certificate of Lawful use to let out a residential property on a shorthold tenancy agreement only if you were to alter the property into a HMO (ie bedsits)." Basically they have nothing on file to prove rental to students since 2011.
Should the solicitors have done further enquiries to ascertain previous tenancy agreements? I'm assuming it would have shown up in the local searches that there was an Article 4 Direction?
It was our first student BTL so we probably never informed the sols that we were wanting to rent to students, and I don't think we were asked, but are now left in a position where we have no proof that it can be used as a small HMO....
Does anyone have any experience/advice on this?
Many thanks.
