Moving in Manchester with Koala
You'll never need to visit an office. ID checks, forms and signatures all happen online, and your conveyancer tells you on WhatsApp the moment anything moves.
Searches in Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is ten boroughs, and each has its own council. A city address goes to Manchester City Council, while a home in Salford, Trafford, Stockport, Bolton or Wigan goes to that borough instead. United Utilities handles the water and drainage search right across the area.
The north and west of the county, around Wigan, Bolton and Oldham, sit on the old Lancashire coalfield, so a coal mining search is often needed there. Near the Irwell and the Mersey, the flood search matters: the Irwell flooded parts of Salford on Boxing Day 2015. Our guide to conveyancing searches explains each one.
Things we look out for in Manchester
- City centre apartments. Flats in the city centre, Salford Quays and Castlefield are leasehold. We go through the lease, the service charge budget and the fire safety paperwork for the building, which lenders look at closely for taller blocks.
- Mill and warehouse conversions. Many of the converted mills in Ancoats and around the canals are listed buildings, so any changes inside or out can need listed building consent as well as the freeholder's say-so.
- Leasehold houses. Greater Manchester has an unusually high number of houses sold on very long leases, often 999 years. They usually work much like freeholds, but we still check the ground rent and any covenants. Our leasehold vs freehold guide explains the difference.
- Chief rents. Some freehold houses here still carry a chief rent, a small yearly charge owed to whoever holds the rentcharge. It sounds old-fashioned, but missed payments can cause problems, so we check for one on every Manchester freehold.
Part of a long chain?
Busy markets mean long chains, and long chains mean more chances for something to slip. Our guide to what happens when a chain breaks explains your options if it does.
