Did you know you could be liable to make payments to repair the chancel of your local mediaevil church???

In having the searches complete on the house we are purchasing we have just found out that it is built (only 10 years ago) on land that was once possibly owned by the church in mediaevil times and therefor has a covernant (of sorts) stating that we as owners of the land could be liable to the upkeep of the church!

I gather it is only a relativly recent thing (a trend set since the church won Aston Cantlow v Wallbank meaning the owners of he rectorial land were liable to 96k in repairs to the church) but this case has meant that we now need to take indemnity insurance to protect us (and the lender) against any risk

A small price to pay at ~180 ish quid but even so

I'm just curious if it is just the house were buying if other houses out there built near old churches also have chancel repair liability and so sitting on a potential money pit? Freelander 2 TD4 Auto, SE, Narvik Black, Alpaca full leather, Rear Headrest Entertainment System, 6 CD, 18 HSE Wheels, Privicy tints

Yes it came up in my recent purchase

Even though the chancel search came back as a no I still was advised to have the policy

Heard of people having to sell to pay for the churches new spire etc so worth the out lay Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

It sounds to me like a mad oldy worldy bylaw type thing (like a pregnant women being able to pee in a policemans hat!) that someone is now capitalising on....

surely the indemnity is just money for old rope? it all sounds barmy to me!

But as you say - its worth it I guess Freelander 2 TD4 Auto, SE, Narvik Black, Alpaca full leather, Rear Headrest Entertainment System, 6 CD, 18 HSE Wheels, Privicy tints

I also think my solicitor had taken a block policy out so it cost now where near the £180 you quote, iirc it was about £50, but small fry to the total £5k+ it cost to move nowadays

I think it's been going on for a number of years, it's just not widely known and only gets in the news when people are bankrupted by it, ridiculous really when the churches have huge coffers and expect Joe public to pay up so they can pay hush money to the choir boys who can't sit down anymore due to after hours teaching by the vicar  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

Sadly quite a common problem now and down our way in the west there was a family bankrupted due to a pay,ment of £180k required to help repair a church !

I only realised about all this about two weeks ago. We are in the process of trying to buy a house. I received some information via some sort of automated link from the solicitor.

We've paid £18 for just this reason. What really gets to me is we've not even exchanged contracts yet  Freelander 1 TD4 HSE - gone, 2 weeks after the Cat.Converter!
Freelander 2 TD4 SE Auto MY08 - Santorini black

Captain Worm wrote:

Did you know you could be liable to make payments to repair the chancel of your local mediaevil church???

What period is Media Evil? It's MEDIEVAL. The standard of spelling thses days, tisk, tisk!


Personally, it's the stamp duty that cracks me up. 12.5k last time!

That's one expensive house at 1% SD, unless you bought pre SD drop then it's slightly less expensive  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

The Stamp Duty is on a sliding scale after 250,000. Then it's 3% between 250,000 to 500,000. Then it goes to 5% up to a million. Anyway, it was purchased a couple of years ago when you might have been charged a little bit more than today.

That said, I suppose it's a large house. Dont get me started on Council Tax.

Just worked it out according to todays scales and it's roughly right, the only difference being, the level at which you started paying stamp duty was a little lower, but not by much in honesty. Think you must have been working on the assumption the 12.5k was based on 1% not matter what the total value of the house, which if correct would have made my house worth 1.5 million. I am just an ordinary person!

you asummed right, never looked at what stamp duty was on rated on higher value houses, i didn't need too when I bought mine  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

It's cheap up north....... I hope to downsize next year to a small 2 bed cottage in a more expensive area which will cost me 5% SD, not to mention 3% to the estate agent on the one I am selling, hence I was amused by the £5k to move comment! Upgraded to an ex demo, 7 mth old, Rimini Red/Ebony Napoli Auto HSE on 28th Jan 2011, added roof rails, mudflaps and side strips.
Gone - A great 57 Plate, Auto SE, Bought Feb 2009, Roof Rails and Mudflaps added on purchase. Blue colour, anything but drug dealer black.....

i only paid 1.25% to the estate agent and that inc all conveyancing on the sale (perk of my mother working for the firm for 20+yrs) and it didn't inc SD Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

Isn't "SD" some kind of sexual disease?

Spelling was never my strong point - although I think that one was a typo!

I'm with dunroof on this one... costing me best part of 13k to move house which is a shocker!!! to then have to pay a further 180 quid just gets on my nerves!

Oh and as for 300 quid for searches, that someone just puts the postcode in a computer baffles me!

and dont get me started on the solicitors!!  Freelander 2 TD4 Auto, SE, Narvik Black, Alpaca full leather, Rear Headrest Entertainment System, 6 CD, 18 HSE Wheels, Privicy tints

'Isn't "SD" some kind of sexual disease?'
Bad news for owners of the 190bhp model...... Upgraded to an ex demo, 7 mth old, Rimini Red/Ebony Napoli Auto HSE on 28th Jan 2011, added roof rails, mudflaps and side strips.
Gone - A great 57 Plate, Auto SE, Bought Feb 2009, Roof Rails and Mudflaps added on purchase. Blue colour, anything but drug dealer black.....