Can I Pull Out of a House Purchase?

The short answer to the question in the title is one beloved of lawyers namely: it depends. The answer is yes you may pull out before ‘missives are concluded’; but no you may not once ‘missives are concluded’. An explanation of the legalese of ‘missives being...

Buying a House in Scotland – FAQs

What should I do first?   Not many people can buy a property without getting a loan from a bank or building society. So the first thing is to get an agreement in principle from a lender as to how much you can borrow – so you know how much you can offer....

Purchase of Flats etc at ‘Auction’

The usual way of buying a house, or a flat (or other ‘heritable’ property) involves the would-be purchasers having viewed it after it has been publicly advertised; getting their solicitor to put in a written offer to the sellers’ solicitors; and, if that offer is...

Care Home Fees Protection – No Magic Fix

It is not unusual for a client or prospective client to approach us for advice about protecting their assets (usually a house) against possible future long-term residential care costs: they may have seen publicity about such schemes or heard of them from friends. The...

Divorce & Financial Provision

When it comes to financial provision on divorce it has been said that “…the matter is essentially one of discretion [for the court] aimed at achieving a fair and practicable result in accordance with common-sense…” (per Lord President Hope in Little v...

Why Should I Make a Will?

There are two main answers to that question. By making a Will you choose (i) who you want to deal with the administration of your affairs on your death, and (ii) who you want to benefit from your estate. It’s worth expanding a bit on each of those reasons. (i) the...