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If you are interested in Joint Ownership and are looking for other investors there are many agencies that specialise in this area. If you are interested in starting a dialogue with other like-minded individuals register with a joint ownership introduction service.
Through the process of contacting, interviewing and assessing them, you will establish whether you feel you could live with each other.
Contacting your prospective joint buyer/s
Contact one or more of the people on the list by email. Get to know each other a little.
Speak on the phone if you wish.
Arrange to meet with one or more of the prospective buyers, perhaps all together at a public place. Go through a process of elimination based on what each of you are looking for and find out whether you feel you could share a home with them. Well-publicised codes of personal safety should be observed when meeting up with people you have met through the Internet.
Get to know them better by talking about your backgrounds, jobs, interests, houses, television, music, books, where you're from, holidays etc.
Discuss the elements of the trust deed or declaration of trust and co-habitation agreement and find out what your views are on various aspects of it. Look for any areas of compromise.
Ask for character references. If you are apprehensive about proceeding without knowing more about your potential joint owners you may ask for proof that they have no criminal record or financial debts. Under the Data Protection Act, you are not able to have checks carried out on other people. It is up to the individual to gain proof that checks have been undertaken and to show you the original documents (not photocopies) confirming their records.
For documentation proving that you do not have a criminal record you will need to complete a Subject Access Form which is available from your local police station. This check will cost you around 10. It is not as extensive as those undertaken by The Criminal Records Bureau. It is not possible for an individual to ask for a search by the CRB.
To get a record of your credit rating, you can contact Equifax.
When you get to know each other better, see if your mortgages and deposits can get you the sort of property you want, or whether you need another partner to join you.
If none of the original selection appeals a EUROS and someone might, a second time around a EUROS go back or visit all the other introduction websites listed above.
You will probably have a joint mortgage and a joint account. You can pay different deposits and different amounts of the mortgage, and you might decide this gives you rights to varying proportions of the equity when you come to sell. This will all need to be detailed in the trust deed, declaration of trust or co-habitation agreement. Records will have to be kept to determine who has paid what towards the property.
When you get to know each other well enough, perhaps you will want to see where you each live, to each gauge the other's lifestyle!
When you have agreed on where you want to live, your budget and preferred property type, then it's time to contact some estate agents!
When viewing houses, think about whether you might want two living rooms, or two bathrooms, or to rent out a reception room as a bedroom.
You should be very clear from the outset about what you expect from the property and how you see the space being used.
The way you manage your relationship will be very important.
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