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Western Isles Property Buying GuideBuying property in Scotland is a bit different to that in England or Wales. Usually solicitors have estate agents within their premises. I have rarely seen estate agents as businesses themselves. But just because you want to perhaps buy a property that is at a particular solicitor's - you don't have to necessarily use that solicitor for the conveyancing. The main thing is that your solicitor is located and licensed in Scotland. If you decide to use a mainland solicitor for conveyancing and the seller is using a local solicitor, then expect it to take longer. Gazumping does not exist in buying property up here. Once you make an offer and it's accepted, the seller is obligated legally to sell to you. They cannot take any further offers after that point, even if higher. Generally, you make an offer and if a closing date for offers is mentioned, the seller will make a decision on which offer to go for. It isn't necessarily the highest bidder! Sometimes someone may make a lower offer but it's cash so therefore a quicker sale. Buying a CroftA croft is NOT a building, it's a smallholding, usually with a tenancy but sometimes freehold (or 'free-gift' as they are known on Lewis).If you buy a croft tenancy, it is subject to Crofting Law. You buy the tenancy (which can be for quite a large amount, say 20,000GBP) but then pay a yearly or twice-yearly rent to the landlord of the croft. If you go to see a house to buy that also is offering the tenancy of the croft, it is not a given that you will get the croft! The house generally sits on a 'feu' - land that has been de-crofted and is owned outright by the houseowner. The croft is still owned by the landlord. There is a process you have to go through in order to get that croft and involves the Crofter's Commission. The croft tenancy will be offered to the other crofters in that area and if it's not taken up within a certain amount of time, then you have the choice to buy the tenancy. The local crofters have first refusal, in other words. Once you get a tenancy, the tenancy is inheritable. You will find crofters whose original tenancies began with their great-grandfathers! If a croft is a 'free-gift' croft (on Lewis, this was land that gifted by Lord Leverhulme to those who wanted it - particularly on Great Bernera - back in the 1920's), then it doesn't go through the Crofter's Commission process. You proceed with the sale as any other freehold. When you go to view a property, it will be clear in the property listings whether it's subject to Crofter's Commission or not. All of the solicitors on Lewis are experts on crofting law. You have to be careful if you use a mainland solicitor as they may not be 'au fait' with this - unless they are from other crofting areas themselves such as Skye. Property Buying Assistance ServiceI have had several enquiries regarding property from people wishing to move to the Western Isles but find the process of viewing properties difficult because of the cost of coming back and forth to Lewis. Sometimes folks can't afford to stay in a B&B and then find nothing suitable at that time. It's also not a good idea to try to buy property sight unseen and then the first time you see the place is when you move into it - very risky as there have been folks that have received nasty shocks about the condition of the place and so forth.So I have decided to offer a 'proxy' service to help you make a better decision about finding a suitable property. If you make the contact with an estate agent or property owner (in the case of for sale by owners) telling them I am acting on your behalf, I can then take photos, draw out a floor plan, find out what properties are adjacent to yours, what the neighbours are like etc - you tell me what you're needing and I'll endeavour to find out for you. So, if you have a number of properties you wish to have a look at, I can create a portfolio for you to help narrow down your decision. The more properties you have for me to look at once for you, the cheaper it is... so it's best to have me look at several properties in one day rather than one here and there. And it isn't timebound like it would be if you only had a week in a B&B to try to find suitable properties. What the service does not entail: I will not negotiate properties, arrange mortgages, surveyors or solicitors. I only provide information so that you can make an informed decision before making an offer or to come up to Lewis or Harris to have a look.If you are interested, contact me via the Contacts page.
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