Something changed? Understand your property options.

The situations we are asked about most

• Separation or divorce

  What normally happens to a jointly owned home, and the options before anyone decides to sell.

• Bereavement or inherited property

  Confirmation, executor powers, empty-property costs and what usually happens before a sale.

• Mortgage payments becoming difficult

  What options exist when the mortgage is a stretch — long before arrears or repossession.

• Mortgage arrears or repossession worries

  Where arrears lead in Scotland, what help exists, and whether selling first is possible.

• Downsizing or retirement

  Moving to something smaller, releasing equity from a family home, and the order to do it in.

• Relocating for work

  Coordinating a Scottish sale with a start date, and what to do if the dates do not line up.

• Landlord considering selling

  Exiting a let property, selling with tenants in place, and what a tenancy means for a sale.

• Property needs major work

  Whether to repair before selling, what the Home Report will show, and selling as-is.

• Need to sell more quickly than normal

  What the faster routes actually are, what they cost in price, and how to compare them fairly.

• Sale fallen through

  What happens in Scotland when a buyer pulls out, and how quickly you can go again.

• Facing repossession

  What the Scottish court process involves, and whether selling first is possible.

• Executry property

  Selling a property that forms part of an estate, and what confirmation means.

• Unmortgageable property

  Why a lender says no, and what that leaves you with.

• Property with a tenant in place

  Selling with tenants living there, and what Scottish tenancy law allows.

Other circumstances

• Negative equity

  What it means when the property is worth less than the loan, and what can still be done.

• Moving abroad

  Selling a Scottish property from overseas, or before you go, and what changes once you leave.

• Empty property

  Insurance, council tax and deterioration — the cost of leaving a property standing empty.

• Selling before buying another home

  Sequencing a sale and a purchase in Scotland, and what to do if a chain goes wrong.

• Broken chain

  When the transaction above or below you collapses and your dates no longer line up.

• Sequestration or bankruptcy

  What happens to a home when someone is sequestrated in Scotland.

• Selling under power of attorney

  Selling a relative's home when you hold a registered power of attorney.

• Moving into care

  Whether the family home has to be sold to pay for residential care in Scotland.

• Title problem

  Missing deeds, burdens, boundary errors and other title defects that stall a sale.

• No building warrant

  Work done without a warrant or completion certificate, found at the point of sale.

• Fire-damaged property

  Selling after a fire, and how insurance claims interact with a sale.

• Subsidence or movement

  Cracking, movement and what lenders and buyers need to see before proceeding.

• Cladding and EWS1

  Flats in blocks where lenders are asking about external wall systems.

• Selling a second home

  Capital gains, the Additional Dwelling Supplement and second-home council tax.

• Selling a holiday let

  Short-term let licensing, control areas and how they affect a sale.

Other circumstances

• Failed to sell at auction

  The property did not meet its reserve. What the options are now.

• Japanese knotweed

  What a management plan is, and why it matters more than the plant itself.

• Flood risk

  Selling where SEPA maps show flood risk, or where the property has flooded.

Common questions

Does Lothian Property sell my home?

No. Lothian Property publishes property information and, with your permission, can introduce you to an appropriate professional. The professional you appoint carries out the service.

Do I have to sell?

No. Many of the situations covered here have answers that do not involve selling at all. The purpose of these pages is to set out the options honestly.