<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584</id><updated>2011-10-08T09:14:56.950-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Waters &amp; Co.</title><subtitle type='html'>Solicitors and Estate Agents - 81 High Street, Coleshill, Birmingham B46 3AG - Tel: (01675) 463855 / 467605</subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default?max-results=100'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>34</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>100</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-2915346736000883947</id><published>2020-01-01T13:14:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-11-02T04:26:20.749-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="FONT-STYLE: italic; TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Weather Forecast for Coleshill&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div id="cont_df3c28bdd555b7204e8d45f9012b2977"&gt;&lt;script src="http://www.yourweather.co.uk/wid_loader/df3c28bdd555b7204e8d45f9012b2977" type="text/javascript"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290807244032940082" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 280px; HEIGHT: 265px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SWy5KBOlmDI/AAAAAAAAABQ/SmokSrWzB3Q/s200/DSCF02491.JPG" border="0" /&gt; &lt;p align="center"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0); TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;With decades of combined experience in both estate agency and legal services, we offer an unrivalled proposition for those seeking to sell properties in Coleshill and surrounding areas&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;Estate agency and conveyancing under one roof&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Free, no obligation valuations with expert advice from the areas most successful selling agent&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Highly competitive sale fee incorporating legal costs&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Proactive marketing approach with extensive mailing list of potential buyers and investors&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Regular colour press advertising in Coleshill, Water Orton and surrounding villages&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Quality sales particulars incorporating professional photographs and accurate floor plans &lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Distinctive For Sale boards&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Prominent High Street office and window displays including a rolling electronic ‘slide show’&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Internet exposure via all the leading property portals including rightmove.co.uk, findaproperty.com and primelocation.com&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="COLOR: rgb(204,0,0); TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 225px; HEIGHT: 36px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SXCiOEauWbI/AAAAAAAAABg/9tNxBZZYhLg/s200/RMlogo_01.jpg" /&gt; &lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 220px; HEIGHT: 82px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/S-QZ8sSShPI/AAAAAAAAAVQ/IGFQQQhengY/s320/findaproperty.jpg" border="0" /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 15px auto; WIDTH: 250px; HEIGHT: 35px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/S-QZqW6NC9I/AAAAAAAAAVI/X32u9h0kGQA/s320/prime+location.jpg" border="0" /&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-2915346736000883947?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2915346736000883947'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2915346736000883947'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SWy5KBOlmDI/AAAAAAAAABQ/SmokSrWzB3Q/s72-c/DSCF02491.JPG' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-9070691983168330817</id><published>2011-10-08T08:56:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2011-10-08T09:07:52.522-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Mol7vZBgoyM/TpBwEy2AQ8I/AAAAAAAAAdg/xcvFDF7JgzY/s1600/cqs.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Waters &amp;amp; Co., Solicitors and Estate Agents secures Law Society's new quality mark&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SS5Ms2eSPEM/TpBzQa1QQrI/AAAAAAAAAdk/6AQoAluH9GQ/s1600/cqs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"&gt;&lt;img border="0" height="155" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SS5Ms2eSPEM/TpBzQa1QQrI/AAAAAAAAAdk/6AQoAluH9GQ/s320/cqs.jpg" width="320" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;div&gt;Waters &amp;amp; Co., in Coleshill, has secured membership to the Law Society's Conveyancing Quality Scheme - the mark of excellence for the home buying process.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div&gt;Waters &amp;amp; Co., underwent rigorous assessment by the Law Society in order to secure CQS status, which marks the firm out as meeting high standards in the residential conveyancing process.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Law Society President John Wotton said that the Law Society introduced CQS to promote high standards in the home buying process.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“CQS improves efficiency with common, consistent standards and service levels and enables consumers to recognise practices that provide a quality residential conveyancing service.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Buying a home is one of the largest purchases anyone will make in their lifetime, so it is essential that it is done to the highest standard by a solicitor. There are many different conveyancing service providers out there, making it difficult for home buyers to identify those which can ensure a safe and efficient level of service.”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Teresa Waters, Managing Partner says: "Waters &amp;amp; Co., is delighted to have secured CQS status. It is recognition of the high standards we provide to our residential property clients and is a signal to future home buyers of the excellent service level we provide at what is often a stressful time for many people.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“The overall beneficiaries will be clients who use Waters &amp;amp; Co., when buying a home. They will receive a reliable, efficient service as recognised by the CQS standard."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The scheme requires practices to undergo a strict assessment, compulsory training, self reporting, random audits and annual reviews in order to maintain CQS status. It is open only to members of the Law Society who meet the demanding standards set by the scheme and has the support of the Council of Mortgage Lenders, the Building Societies Association, Legal Ombudsman and the Association of British Insurers.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;(Waters &amp;amp; Co., Solicitors &amp;amp; Estate Agents, 81 High St., Coleshill, Birmingham B46 3AG&lt;br /&gt;01675 463855   &lt;a href="mailto:office@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;office@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;a href="http://www.waterssolicitors.co.uk/"&gt;www.waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For more information on the Law Society's Conveyancing Quality Scheme visit &lt;a href="http://www.lawsociety.org.uk/cqs"&gt;www.lawsociety.org.uk/cqs&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;August 2011&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-9070691983168330817?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/9070691983168330817'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/9070691983168330817'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2011/10/waters-co.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SS5Ms2eSPEM/TpBzQa1QQrI/AAAAAAAAAdk/6AQoAluH9GQ/s72-c/cqs.jpg' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-6976682689312705094</id><published>2010-10-04T02:55:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-11-05T04:25:34.000-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div align="center"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Standards and Complaints&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align="justify"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align="justify"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align="justify"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align="justify"&gt;We aim to provide a high standard of professional service and if at any time you feel that this is not being maintained, please discuss it with the person handling your matter. Please contact Mrs. Waters, Managing Partner, if you prefer and we assure you that we will endeavour to resolve your complaint internally.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If we cannot resolve your complaint internally, you should put your complaint in writing. Your complaint will be acknowledged within three days of receipt and we will produce to you our full complaints procedure timetable which is also available upon request at any time.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you are not satisfied with our handling of your complaint, you can ask the Legal Ombudsman (address: PO Box 15870, Birmingham B30 9EB / website: www.legalombudsman.org.uk / telephone: 0300 555 0333) to consider the complaint. Normally, you will need to bring a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a final written response from us. &lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic;font-size:85%;" &gt;October 2010&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: right"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-6976682689312705094?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/6976682689312705094'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/6976682689312705094'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2010/10/standards-and-complaints-we-aim-to.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-5275367956912722263</id><published>2010-09-30T23:15:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-10-01T04:17:25.708-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Mailing List&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Please feel free to complete the online form and we will regularly send you details of properties that match your requirements.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;script src="http://www.jotform.com/jsform/2730629637"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: right"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: right"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-5275367956912722263?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/5275367956912722263'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/5275367956912722263'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2010/09/mailing-list-please-send-details-of.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-567076955920023528</id><published>2010-09-30T12:27:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-10-01T09:16:21.953-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div align="center"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;Client Satisfaction Questionnaire&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div align="center"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div align="center"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align="center"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align="center"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align="center"&gt;Please feel free to complete the online form as your feedback is important to us. If you were not happy with any aspect of our service, please let &lt;strong&gt;us&lt;/strong&gt; know. If you were happy, please let &lt;strong&gt;others&lt;/strong&gt; know!&lt;/div&gt;&lt;script src="http://www.jotform.com/jsform/2724502659"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-567076955920023528?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/567076955920023528'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/567076955920023528'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2010/09/blog-post.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-23339646597168342</id><published>2010-01-12T04:41:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-01-15T02:29:29.088-08:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; width: 160px; height: 173px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/S0yPCrQa3qI/AAAAAAAAAPw/pLqoleOob9A/s400/icr.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425868927208709794" border="0" /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Wills for Free Scheme&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;The Institute of Cancer Research has teamed up with Waters &amp;amp; Co. Solicitors to create a Wills for Free Scheme and help save lives. You will get independent, professional advice from Waters &amp;amp; Co. allowing you to make a &lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;basic &lt;/span&gt;Will or updating your existing one and it won't cost you a penny (subject to voucher availability).&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Institute of Cancer Research will bear the cost of a &lt;span&gt;basic &lt;/span&gt;Will in the hope that you can help fund future research.  Whilst providing for your family and friends will of course take priority, they hope that once you have looked after your nearest and dearest, you would consider leaving a gift to the Institute of Cancer Research in your Will.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Although you are under no obligation to do so, your gift will help them continue with vital research.  Your legacy could help save lives.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;For further information, please e-mail &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);" href="mailto:teresa@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;teresa@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;or call Teresa Waters on 01675 463855.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" &gt;January 2010&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-23339646597168342?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/23339646597168342'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/23339646597168342'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2010/01/wills-for-free-in-conjunction-with.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/S0yPCrQa3qI/AAAAAAAAAPw/pLqoleOob9A/s72-c/icr.jpg' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-877553088556499800</id><published>2009-12-11T04:21:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-12-24T04:39:24.313-08:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Christmas and New Year Opening&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5413964750332163938" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 190px; HEIGHT: 190px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SyJEQYoI92I/AAAAAAAAAPM/wCiVtAsXr3k/s320/holly.jpg" border="0" /&gt; &lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"&gt;Waters &amp;amp; Co. offices will close at 1:00pm on Friday 24th December 2010 and will not re-open until 9:00am on Tuesday 4th January 2011.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Our estate agency and legal answering machines will be regularly monitored during the holiday period so please feel free to leave a message should you wish to view one of our properties.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: right"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-877553088556499800?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/877553088556499800'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/877553088556499800'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/12/christmas-and-new-year-opening-our.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SyJEQYoI92I/AAAAAAAAAPM/wCiVtAsXr3k/s72-c/holly.jpg' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-2167538487479983697</id><published>2009-10-15T05:52:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-11-26T03:35:16.850-08:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Meet The Team&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;V L Bruce Waters&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Partner&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a style="COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)" href="mailto:office@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;office@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Teresa Waters&lt;/span&gt;&lt;strong&gt; LL.B&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Managing Partner&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a style="COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)" href="mailto:teresa@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;teresa@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Lesley Snowdon&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Conveyancing Manager&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a style="COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)" href="mailto:lesley@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;lesley@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Lynda Robinson&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Personal Assistant / Cashier&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a style="COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)" href="mailto:office@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;office@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Mandy Sparrow&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Legal Secretary&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a style="COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)" href="mailto:secretarial@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;secretarial@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Amanda Murtagh&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Conveyancing Assistant&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a style="COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)" href="mailto:support@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;support@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Jason Peters FNAEA CertREA&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Estate Agency Manager&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a style="COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)" href="mailto:estate@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;estate@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Gill Barry&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Sales Negotiator&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a style="COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)" href="mailto:reception@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;reception@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;(page under construction&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: right"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-2167538487479983697?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2167538487479983697'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2167538487479983697'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/10/meet-team-page-under-construction.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-622050065979799016</id><published>2009-10-01T06:14:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-10-09T09:08:06.411-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Previous Sales &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This page contains only a small selection of the many desirable properties sold by Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 300px; HEIGHT: 225px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/TLCQQkmv_PI/AAAAAAAAAbE/4MDtsd1h5t4/s320/wat000711.jpg" border="1" /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;Hoggrills End Lane, Hoggrills End - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SsW9sz9oIjI/AAAAAAAAAI0/vz09MU_SYIc/s320/wat000594+%28main%29.JPG" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SsW8qKPMIGI/AAAAAAAAAIs/d9tg2BbeVSk/s320/WAT1000293.jpg" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;Bentley Lane, Maxstoke - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;**&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;Purley Chase Lane, Mancetter - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/TLCKS8lcLyI/AAAAAAAAAa8/MvsJPZwLvdE/s320/wat000737.jpg" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/S3FboAM1woI/AAAAAAAAAQg/buhWqAYD7lI/s400/wat000381%28b%29.jpg" border="1" /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;Manor House Way, Water Orton - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;***&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;***&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;Coleshill Road, Maxstoke - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;**&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SsTQDQXDwRI/AAAAAAAAAIk/nXYyyEiP5rk/s320/DSCF0279.JPG" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SsX2Auw1HZI/AAAAAAAAAJk/CoY5Vuiexk4/s320/WAT1000403.jpg" border="1" /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ffffff;"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;Tamworth Road, Nether Whitacre - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;***&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;Bourne Brook Close, Fillongley - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SsW_EwNZc7I/AAAAAAAAAI8/A53O9pR-TPc/s320/WAT1000671.jpg" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/TLCSwT4SH1I/AAAAAAAAAbM/0YeEKFadwcE/s320/Wat000770.jpg" border="1" /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ffffff;"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;Coleshill Road, Furnace End - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;**&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;Cottage Lane, Whitacre Heath - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SsXBJfblIKI/AAAAAAAAAJU/pOl1e-SNzJs/s320/WAT1000554.jpg" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SsXAchvfj1I/AAAAAAAAAJM/EwXjVWIbubc/s320/WAT1000215.jpg" border="1" /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;Shawbury Lane, Shustoke - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;Coleshill Road, Water Orton - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SsX89fMJKXI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/a0DxZJPXXjs/s320/WAT1000563.jpg" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;img style="MARGIN: 0px auto; WIDTH: 267px; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SsW_9dIN5dI/AAAAAAAAAJE/ykyITwV5SYQ/s320/WAT1000344.jpg" border="1" /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;Old Church Road, Water Orton - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;**&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(255,255,255)"&gt;*&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;The Crescent, Hampton-in-Arden - &lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; COLOR: rgb(255,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(204,0,0)"&gt;SOLD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: right"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;Updated: October 2010&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: right"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-622050065979799016?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/622050065979799016'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/622050065979799016'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/10/recent-sales-this-page-depicts-only.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/TLCQQkmv_PI/AAAAAAAAAbE/4MDtsd1h5t4/s72-c/wat000711.jpg' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-5947973740604894533</id><published>2009-09-01T02:26:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-11-02T08:15:35.156-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Tips on Selling Your Property Quickly &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"&gt;It almost goes without saying, but in order to achieve the best possible price in the shortest possible time, your home must be in tip top condition. Also, if there are competing properties on the market in the near vicinity, buyers can afford to be selective and will more likely opt for the property that they feel offers best value for the money.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We recommend you follow these guidelines:-&lt;br /&gt;&lt;ol&gt;&lt;li&gt;De-clutter, touch up, re-decorate and carry out minor repairs if necessary in order to present your home in the best possible condition, preferably before you put it on the market.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Be realistic. If an estate agent values your home at a figure much higher than you were expecting, seek at least one other opinion and treat the average of the two as a guide. Remember, potential buyers now have a wealth of information available to them to assess whether a property is priced too high. Furthermore, surveyors are likely to down value a property if a purchaser has agreed to pay an over inflated figure.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;In a competitive market, you need determination to sell and be aggressive with your marketing price. Remember, if you are also buying, you will be able to drive a hard bargain on the property you wish to purchase.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Do not be lured by cheap fees from an estate agent or solicitor. There will be an obvious reason why they are discounting fees - ultimately, you will get what you pay for! Certainly look for competitive fees; but, essentially, coupled with a proven track record of selling in your area. Ideally, choose an agent based on personal recommendation.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Before any offer is accepted, do ensure that the buyer has a mortgage approved in principle and any chain below has been thoroughly checked out. Lenders are still being really selective about who they offer finance to and on what terms.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ol&gt;If you are thinking about selling your property, Waters &amp;amp; Co. are here to assist. We are the most successful firm of estate agents in the locality. We achieve that by being proactive, efficient, competitive and approachable. We offer the convenience of having both estate agency and solicitors services under one roof, here in your local High Street, so you can pop in for a chat at any time!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You can trust Waters &amp;amp; Co. with your most valuable asset - the professional standard of solicitors rank among the highest in the country and those standards apply to our estate agency work too. Please call us for further advice and guidance on (01675) 467605 or 463855.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;January 2010&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: right"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-5947973740604894533?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/5947973740604894533'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/5947973740604894533'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/09/how-to-sell-your-house-quickly-in.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-6982910590143595099</id><published>2009-07-14T04:22:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:06:56.861-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"&gt; &lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;Gardens In Bloom 2009&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This page features a selection of beautiful gardens accompanying properties on the market with Waters &amp;amp; Co. during the qualifying period.  To coincide with the judging of Coleshill In Bloom, we announced the winners of our very own Gardens In Bloom competition.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; width: 400px; height: 298px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SmRxgxDObzI/AAAAAAAAAEY/S1p1F3U6D44/s400/DSCF0993-1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360534264214351666" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:85%;" &gt;Overall Champion - &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:85%;" &gt;Breeden Drive, Curdworth&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;(Small Garden Category Winner)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; width: 300px; height: 225px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SmRywWKZSGI/AAAAAAAAAEg/mEPbV7Ej8kY/s400/wat000333-g.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360535631386200162" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:85%;" &gt;Reserve Champion - Cottage Lane, Whitacre Heath&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;(Large Garden Category Winner)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; width: 300px; height: 225px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SmRzt1xbZgI/AAAAAAAAAEo/h5xgjq847W0/s400/wat000501-g.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360536687843436034" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:85%;" &gt;Highly Commended - Church Avenue, Water Orton&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;(Medium Garden Category Winner)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" src="http://w603.photobucket.com/pbwidget.swf?pbwurl=http://w603.photobucket.com/albums/tt113/watersandco/GARDENS/21479af8.pbw" width="600" height="180"&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:85%;" &gt;Highly Commended&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;(Runners Up)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;Waters &amp;amp; Co. Solicitors and Estate Agents ran a summer initiative to sell houses by focusing on the gardens of properties on the market with them.  Sellers were invited to enter a photograph of their garden into the Gardens in Bloom photographic competition.  The gardens were judged by all the staff at Waters &amp;amp; Co. in large, medium and small size categories from which a Champion and Reserve Champion were then selected.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Champion was the winner of the small garden category attached to a house in Breeden Drive, Curdworth.  The proud owners were presented with a small cup, rosette and bottle of champage.  A sale was agreed on the property within days of the overall winner being chosen.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The winner of the large garden section, also voted the Reserve Champion, is located in Cottage Lane, Nether Whitacre.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The winning medium sized garden is located in Church Avenue, Water Orton. This property was one of many sold during the qualifying period.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“We believe that gardens and outside space can be as important to buyers as internal specifications.  We are currently displaying garden photos in our shop window and press advertising as a new angle on sales promotion” said Jonathan Cooke, estate agency manager at Waters &amp;amp; Co.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“Our sellers seem to like the idea and we are pleased with the added interest we have created in potential buyers.  We have agreed an increased number of sales during this initiative.  It was difficult picking the winning gardens, therefore we decided to award 'Highly Commended' rosettes to several runners up” stated Teresa Waters, Partner of Waters &amp;amp; Co.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“Our sellers were really behind the initiative and, through our combined effort, we have generated more viewings.” said Gill Barry, sales negotiator.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;To coincide with the Coleshill in Bloom Window Display competition, Waters &amp;amp; Co. will be featuring the winning gardens as part of their window display.  “We are hoping to repeat our success of 2008 and also help Coleshill to win another Gold Medal” said Teresa Waters.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: left;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:85%;" &gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;July 2009&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-6982910590143595099?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/6982910590143595099'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/6982910590143595099'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/07/gardens-in-bloom-2009-this-page.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SmRxgxDObzI/AAAAAAAAAEY/S1p1F3U6D44/s72-c/DSCF0993-1.JPG' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-265325683178718579</id><published>2009-06-02T07:17:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:06:27.599-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"&gt; &lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;" &gt;How to Find Us&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SiU0sdDcAfI/AAAAAAAAAD4/q99mhHWPYEU/s400/map.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342734471262896626" border="0" /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: normal;"&gt;From Junction 4 of the M6 or Junction 9 of the M42, take the A446  following directions for Coleshill.  Waters &amp;amp; Co. Solicitors and Estate Agents are situated upon the B4117 High Street, a short distance up the hill from the crossroads with the B4114 Birmingham Road / Blythe Road.  There is a free car park situated at the rear which can be accessed via Church Hill.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right; font-weight: normal;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: normal;font-size:100%;" &gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-265325683178718579?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/265325683178718579'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/265325683178718579'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/06/how-to-find-us-waters-co.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SiU0sdDcAfI/AAAAAAAAAD4/q99mhHWPYEU/s72-c/map.jpg' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-1327710754487410056</id><published>2009-05-01T03:33:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:09:58.641-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;50 Years Recognition&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; width: 400px; height: 282px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SfrQLVgBwfI/AAAAAAAAADA/ZKk847PMlxM/s400/Bruce+Waters+Presentation+photo.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330802002115019250" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:78%;"&gt;Bruce Waters with Caroline Coates, President of the Birmingham Law Society&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;Coleshill Solicitor, Bruce Waters, was recently presented with a commemorative plaque by the outgoing President of the Birmingham Law Society, Caroline Coates, in recognition of being admitted as a solicitor for 50 years.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Bruce was articled in February 1954 to his uncle, Bill Lloyd of Lloyd &amp;amp; Robinson, based in Stafford, his home town.  No wages were paid in those days.  In fact his father had to pay £300 premium to the firm for the privilege of taking his son on for 5 years.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Bruce passed his Law Society Finals in November 1958, at his first attempt, and was admitted as a Solicitor in March 1959 aged 21.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Although his National Service had been deferred, Bruce was eventually conscripted into the Staffordshire Regiment.  After basic training at Whittington Barracks, Bruce went to Mons Officer Cadet School, Aldershot and passed out as best cadet then was posted to the Worcestershire Regiment as a 2nd Lieutenant.  Towards the end of his 2 year conscription, Bruce joined Army Legal Services and signed on for a three year commission.  He was posted to BAOR Germany and prosecuted at courts marshall throughout the British sector.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When Bruce left the Army he entered private practice eventually joining Maurice Putsman &amp;amp; Co. in Birmingham.  Before long, however, Bruce started his own practice, initially in West Bromwich, later moving to Birmingham City Centre and, 19 years ago in 1990, arriving in Coleshill with his wife Teresa as a partner when they took over the practice of Whitehead Watts (formerly Rutherfords) in the High Street.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Bruce, nearly 72 now, still enjoys his job at Waters &amp;amp; Co., undertaking mainly matrimonial, landlord &amp;amp; tenant and commercial work, on a part time basis but with no thoughts of retirement just yet.  On the days when he is not in the office, Bruce can be found either out cycling, sometimes up to 200 miles per week,  learning French, playing the piano or walking his two whippets.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“We are all very proud of Bruce’s achievements.  We depend upon him in many ways in the office.  Inevitably, over 50 years he has acquired a wealth of legal expertise which we can draw on, if the need arises.  All of us at Waters &amp;amp; Co. congratulate him on reaching this milestone.” says his wife and partner Teresa.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;May 2009&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-1327710754487410056?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/1327710754487410056'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/1327710754487410056'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/05/50-years-recognition-bruce-waters-with.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SfrQLVgBwfI/AAAAAAAAADA/ZKk847PMlxM/s72-c/Bruce+Waters+Presentation+photo.jpg' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-8633786749840300636</id><published>2009-03-09T03:16:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2010-11-02T04:28:32.513-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Energy Performance Certificates&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"&gt;Home Information Packs, first introduced in 2007 amidst much controversy, were suspended from Friday 21st May 2010 by the newly formed Coalition Government pending primary legislation for a permanent abolition.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now, the only requirement for placing a property on the open market is to commission an Energy Performance Certificate. This rates the energy efficiency of the property using a grading system from A to G which enables buyers to assess what their future energy costs might be. Estate Agents must incorporate the colour chart in their sales particulars and other marketing material, including the Internet.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294160235237042594" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 420px; HEIGHT: 174px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SXiiry1NaaI/AAAAAAAAACI/Vd3d_lXCiRw/s320/epcgraph+6+croxall.jpg" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;Since October 2008, Landlords have been required to produce an EPC to prospective new tenants. Private sales (i.e. where no estate agent is used) also require an EPC, even if the owner is selling to a family member. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;Furthermore, properties that were placed on the market prior to the implementation of HIPs required an EPC if marketing was to continue after this date.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;There are a few easy, low cost measures a house owner could implement before having the property assessed such as fitting low energy light bulbs, increasing loft insulation, increasing hot water cylinder insulation and adding cavity wall insulation. All these items will improve the final energy rating of a property. Higher cost measures to improve energy rating would be to upgrade heating controls, add a hot water cylinder thermostat and replace an older boiler with a Band A condensing model.&lt;/span&gt; Owners with homes rated F and G may be offered grants to make improvements in order to cut their heating costs and carbon emissions. To achieve an A rating, a property would need to be 'carbon neutral' utilising renewable energy sources such as solar photovoltaic panels and wind powered electricity generators.&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;Updated: November 2010&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: right"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-8633786749840300636?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/8633786749840300636'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/8633786749840300636'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/03/hips-and-epcs-home-information-packs.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SXiiry1NaaI/AAAAAAAAACI/Vd3d_lXCiRw/s72-c/epcgraph+6+croxall.jpg' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-8967813440437061927</id><published>2009-01-26T06:24:00.001-08:00</published><updated>2010-11-02T06:13:27.970-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Stamp Duty&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436242166154974370" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 280px; HEIGHT: 261px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/S3Fpcpqq1KI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/SgwUKM-mKa0/s400/StampDuty.jpg" border="0" /&gt; &lt;p align="justify"&gt;Stamp Duty was invented by the Dutch in 1624 and was first levied in the UK during 1694. Stamp Duty Land Tax was introduced in December 2003 and replaced the old Stamp Duty payable on the purchase of a property or land.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify" align="justify"&gt;The amount of tax payable depends on the status of the buyer and the purchase price. The current bands are as follows:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;First time buyers only&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;£0 - £250,000 = no Stamp Duty payable&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;£250,001 - £500,000 = 3% Stamp Duty payable&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;£500,001 - £1,000,000 = 4% Stamp Duty payable&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;£1,000,001 and above = 5% Stamp Duty payable (from 1st January 2011)&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;/div&gt;Buyers who have previously owned a property &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;£0 - £125,000 = no Stamp Duty payable&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;£125,001 - £250,000 = 1% Stamp Duty payable&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;£250,001 - £500,000 = 3% Stamp Duty payable&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;£500,001 - £1,000,000 = 4% Stamp Duty payable&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;£1,000,001 and above = 5% Stamp Duty payable (from 1st January 2011)&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;p align="justify"&gt;Stamp Duty is paid based on the whole value of the property; so, if you are buying a property at £200,000 and you are not a first time buyer, then you would have to pay £2,000 in tax (not just the amount over the 1% threshold). Similarly, if you were paying £250,001 for a property, you would have to pay £7,500.03 in tax on completion.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The changes introduced in 2003 meant that a purchaser no longer had to submit a one page form providing basic details of the purchase to the Stamp Office. Instead, the Solicitor asks the purchaser to sign a Land Transaction Return form containing seventy questions to be forwarded to the Inland Revenue. This six page document was designed to crack down on people claiming to pay excessive amounts for fixtures and fittings in a bid to avoid paying a higher rate of Stamp Duty.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic;font-size:85%;" &gt;November 2010&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: right"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-8967813440437061927?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/8967813440437061927'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/8967813440437061927'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/stamp-duty.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/S3Fpcpqq1KI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/SgwUKM-mKa0/s72-c/StampDuty.jpg' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-3154760092888902086</id><published>2009-01-23T07:43:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:10:32.447-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Avoiding Repossession &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;In response to the “credit crunch” the Government has introduced new procedures which mortgage lenders should follow before they commence residential possession proceedings.  This may help some families from becoming homeless as a result of mortgage arrears.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The lender must communicate with the borrower in language he can understand and the information must be clear, fair and not misleading.  When arrears occur, the lender must provide their own mortgage arrears information sheet or the National Homeless Advice sheet to the borrower.  Full details of the arrears must be given, including the total amount of arrears and, if interest and/or charges will be added, an estimate of how much they will be.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Lenders must also advise borrowers to make early contact with the Housing Department of the borrower’s Local Authority and/or refer the borrower, where necessary, to an appropriate source of independent debt advice.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If a reasonable request made by the borrower to change the normal payment date or method of payment, is refused, then the lender must promptly give a written explanation of its reasons.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The lender must give 15 business days notice in writing of its intention to start a possession claim.  The majority of lenders have voluntarily agreed with the Government that they will not commence possession proceedings until borrowers are three months in arrears.  Furthermore, if a borrower is making a claim on a mortgage protection policy and there is evidence of a reasonable expectation of payments from an insurer, lenders should not start possession proceedings particularly as the lender quite probably sold the insurance policy to the borrower in the first instance!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;One useful method of persuading a lender to consider delaying possession proceedings is for the borrower to demonstrate that reasonable steps have been taken to market the property at an appropriate price in accordance with professional advice.  A borrower who is selling or intending to sell “privately” (i.e. without such advice) is likely to have an uphill struggle with the lender.  To persuade a lender to delay proceedings the borrower needs, promptly, to provide the lender with a copy of the sales particulars, a home information pack (HIP), and details of offers received.  The borrower must expect to incur the cost of a HIP and sacrifice any element of confidentiality about his dealings with his professional advisers.  Borrowers are expected to provide the lender with full details of their estate agent and solicitor and to authorise them to communicate with the lender about the progress of the sale and the borrowers conduct during the process.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Possession proceedings should be a last resort for a lender.  They should not, normally, be started when settlement negotiations are still actively being explored (e.g. extending the term of the mortgage or changing the type of mortgage).  It is vital that borrowers do not allow letters to go unanswered.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Follow the above guidelines and you should be treated fairly and reasonably by lenders.  If you find that you are not being treated correctly, the Courts will invoke the new rules in favour of you, the borrower.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Our advice is do not wait until Court proceedings are being threatened.  If you know you are getting into difficulties and there is no real hope of negotiating a revised repayment scheme, then Waters &amp;amp; Co. can help you in selling your house through its estate agency and in dealing with all the legal aspects, including liaising with your lender.  It will help you to have a solicitor who is also an estate agent during this critical time.  Please telephone Teresa Waters on 01675 463855 for a confidential discussion of your situation and, if appropriate, a free market appraisal.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The information contained in this newsletter was prepared in January 2009 by Waters &amp;amp; Co. and is intended for general guidance only.  It provides information in a concise form and is not a substitute for obtaining legal advice.  If you would like advice specific to your circumstances, please arrange for an appointment to discuss.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-3154760092888902086?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/3154760092888902086'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/3154760092888902086'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/avoiding-repossession-in-response-to.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-4031349630550278889</id><published>2009-01-23T07:38:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:13:52.260-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Court Adopts Broad Brush Valuation of Business on Divorce&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;On divorce, the valuation of a family business is often a highly emotional and contentious issue, so it was unsurprising when the divorce of a couple after 15 years of marriage led to an acrimonious dispute over the value of their successful restaurant business.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The ex-husband valued the total assets (including the business, which he had run for 33 years) at £4.2 million. His ex-wife placed a valuation on the assets of £7.6 million, valuing the business at £5.3 million. She sought 50 per cent of the net assets plus school fees for the children. Her ex-husband offered 42 per cent of the net assets (£1.7 million), although this offer was later reduced.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Each produced an expert witness to back up their respective valuation of the business, which was the main point of dissent. The experts differed, but the main point of contention was whether the valuation should be based on a multiple of six times ‘maintainable earnings’ or nine times.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The judge relied on evidence of transactions in similar circumstances and ruled that the multiplier should be 6.5. He commented that the valuations of experts were of ‘doubtful utility’ because they are a matter of opinion and experts’ opinions differ. He therefore adopted a broad brush approach. Since there were insufficient resources for a ‘clean break’ arrangement to be financed, he ordered that the wife should receive £1.45 million plus periodical payments of £60,000 annually, child maintenance of £20,000 per annum and the cost of the school fees.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Says Bruce Waters, “Few aspects of the financial arrangements in a divorce can be as contentious as the value of a family business and it is by no means uncommon for quite unrealistic values to be put forward. In many cases, the best overall result is achieved by the use of a single joint expert and sensible negotiation.”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For more specific advice and guidance please telephone Bruce Waters on 01675 463855.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The information contained in this newsletter was prepared in January 2009 and is intended for general guidance only.  It provides information in a concise form and is not a substitute for obtaining legal advice.  If you would like advice specific to your circumstances, please arrange for an appointment to discuss.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-4031349630550278889?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/4031349630550278889'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/4031349630550278889'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/court-adopts-broad-brush-valuation-of.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-7297753400041922815</id><published>2009-01-23T07:31:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:12:49.696-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;Pre-Nuptial Agreement&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;If you have family wealth that you wish to protect, the joy at the prospect of one of your children getting married or entering into a civil partnership may be tempered somewhat by a touch of trepidation in case the relationship doesn’t last, particularly if a large settlement of assets is to be made on the happy couple.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In such circumstances, the use of a pre-nuptial agreement (‘pre-nup’) is likely to make a great deal of sense. Legally speaking, such agreements are still rather a grey area. However, the judge in a leading case on the subject has most helpfully suggested a number of criteria which would assist the courts in deciding whether or not a pre-nup should be regarded as enforceable.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The most important of these from the perspective of the parties to a pre-nup are:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;does the party being asked to sign the pre-nup understand it?&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;has he or she been properly advised as to its terms?&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;was pressure exerted by one party to make the other sign?&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;was there full disclosure of the relevant assets?&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;was pressure exerted by anyone else to make them sign?&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;was the agreement signed willingly?&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;did one party exploit a dominant position?&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;was the agreement entered into in the knowledge that there would be a child?&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;has any unforeseen circumstance arisen which would make enforcing the pre-nup unjust?&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;does the order preclude the payment of any periodical payment for maintenance and if so, would it be unjust to hold the parties to that agreement?&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;are there grounds for believing that upholding the agreement would be unjust?&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;For a pre-nup to achieve the desired object, it must be properly drafted and be put into place in the correct circumstances. In particular, both parties to it should have the benefit of independent legal advice.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you are concerned that a relationship might not have a happy ending, we can assist you to help protect your family’s assets from the depredations of an ex-spouse or civil partner. Contact Bruce Waters on 01675 463855.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The information contained in this newsletter was prepared in October 2008 and is intended for general guidance only.  It provides information in a concise form and is not a substitute for obtaining legal advice.  If you would like advice specific to your circumstances, please arrange for an appointment to discuss.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-7297753400041922815?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/7297753400041922815'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/7297753400041922815'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/in-case-they-dont-live-happily-ever.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-2315983576203298822</id><published>2009-01-23T07:02:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:11:30.397-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Government Abandons Plans to Protect Cohabitees&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;The Government has announced that it does not, for the time being at any rate, intend to proceed with reforms to the law that would have given cohabiting partners similar rights to married couples or civil partners on the breakdown of their relationship.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This unexpected announcement was made by Justice Minister Bridget Prentice and is all the more surprising given the inconsistency of rulings made by the courts in this problematic area.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Law Commission had spent two years working on proposals to give protection to couples who live together. If introduced, these would have set out the respective rights of cohabitees as regards the financial arrangements on the termination of a relationship.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The number of people who are living together in a relationship but who are neither married nor civil partners continues to rise. Many of these people are probably completely unaware that they have few rights in the event of a break-up of their relationship and that such rights as they do have centre around any children of the relationship.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“The problem stems from the fact that, contrary to popular belief, in law there is no such thing as a ‘common law spouse’,” says Bruce Waters of Waters &amp;amp; Co., “Couples who live together do not acquire legal rights and there are no set rules for how their assets should be divided if they split up. With over 2.5 million people currently living together informally, the courts are seeing a flood of disputes about who owns what when such relationships end.”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;One common problem is where partners have lived together for a long time but the property they share continues to be held in the name of only one of the couple. If the couple then split up, this may give rise to a claim that the property should belong to both parties. The issues involved are often complex and such disputes can be very expensive to resolve in court. In some cases, people who have made a very substantial contribution to the financing and improvement of a shared home have been left with little or nothing for their efforts.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The review of the law in this area was intended to create more certainty in such cases, but the Government has chosen instead to wait to see what are the effects of planned reforms to the law in Scotland before any changes are made to the law in England and Wales.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“Meanwhile, the position of cohabitees is best protected by having a formal written agreement, which should be made with the benefit of independent legal advice on both sides,” says Bruce Waters. “This is particularly important where the assets involved are substantial, so that in the event that the relationship founders, a drawn out and acrimonious dispute can be avoided.”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The information contained in this newsletter was prepared in March 2008 and is intended for general guidance only.  It provides information in a concise form and is not a substitute for obtaining legal advice.  If you would like advice specific to your circumstances, please arrange for an appointment to discuss.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-2315983576203298822?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2315983576203298822'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2315983576203298822'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/cohabitees.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-308215399424135337</id><published>2009-01-23T06:56:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:11:01.198-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;Bouncy Castle Judgement Overturned &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;The Court of Appeal has overturned the High Court’s ruling that a boy who suffered brain damage after he was kicked in the head while playing on a bouncy castle should be awarded compensation that could have amounted to £1 million.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Sam Harris, who was 11 years old at the time of the accident, had been playing on a bouncy castle set up in a field behind the home of Catherine and Timothy Perry. The Perrys had hired a bouncy castle and a bungee run for their triplets' birthday party. Sam, who was passing with his father, asked Catherine Perry if he could join in.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Whilst on the bouncy castle Sam was kicked in the head by a 15-year-old boy doing a somersault. Sam's skull was fractured and he suffered a very serious and traumatic brain injury. As a result, he now has severe behavioural problems and requires round the clock care.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In May, the High Court found the Perrys liable for damages. In its view, the accident had been caused because they had not provided adequate supervision for the children playing on the bouncy castle and the bungee run. The Court found that there should have been someone there to prevent the older boy from using the bouncy castle at the same time as the younger children and to ensure that dangerous play was prevented. The hire contract for the castle also stipulated that it should be under constant supervision whilst in use. At the time of the accident, Mrs Perry had her back turned away from the castle while attending to a child on the bungee run.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Perrys appealed against the High Court’s decision, arguing that they had acted no differently from parents up and down the country.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Court of Appeal judged that Mrs Perry could not be blamed for what was a ‘freak and tragic accident’. Lord Chief Justice Lord Phillips said, “The manner in which she was supervising activities on the bouncy castle and the bungee run accorded with the demands of reasonable care for the children using them.” He added, “It is quite impractical for parents to keep children under constant surveillance or even supervision and it would not be in the public interest for the law to impose a duty upon them to do so.”&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Court judged that Mrs Perry had acted reasonably in thinking that she could supervise both play activities at the same time and the injury sustained by Sam, whilst severe, could not reasonably have been foreseen.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As a result of this ruling, Sam will not receive compensation for his injury. However, it is thought likely that his parents will apply to take his case to the House of Lords, despite the Court of Appeal having refused their request for permission to appeal.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" &gt;August 2008&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-308215399424135337?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/308215399424135337'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/308215399424135337'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/bouncy-castle-judgement-overturned.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-2352473372185694653</id><published>2009-01-23T06:39:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-12-18T08:29:36.924-08:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;Tracing Lost Money&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It is by no means uncommon for people to have money in accounts which they or their relatives have forgotten about and the scale of the problem is illustrated by the fact that National Savings and Investments (NS&amp;amp;I) reports that it has £435 million in dormant accounts and bonds. An extra £23 million sits in unclaimed Premium Bond wins.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;However, help is at hand. A website set up by the British Bankers’ Association, the Building Societies Association and NS&amp;amp;I will allow the tracing of lost or dormant accounts to be simplified.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Visit&lt;span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);" target="_blank" href="http://www.mylostaccount.org.uk/"&gt;www.mylostaccount.org.uk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;for further information.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;January 2009&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-2352473372185694653?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2352473372185694653'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2352473372185694653'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/tracing-lost-money-it-is-by-no-means.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-8432527689922587162</id><published>2009-01-16T02:32:00.001-08:00</published><updated>2010-07-15T01:46:05.027-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Profile of Waters &amp;amp; Co.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold;font-size:100%;" &gt;“Large enough to cope - small enough to care”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Q)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;What types of property do Waters &amp;amp; Co. have on offer?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt; We sell all types of residential houses and apartments, including brand new properties in association with well respected builders and developers. We have by far the largest portfolio of properties for sale in the area with over 100 properties available ranging from ‘maisonettes to mansions’, including a variety of probate properties needing refurbishment.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Q)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;And what geographical areas do Waters &amp;amp; Co. cover?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt; The majority of our properties are based in Coleshill, Water Orton, Curdworth, Kingsbury and all surrounding villages including Shustoke, Maxstoke and Whitacre Heath. In the recent past, we have also sold properties as far afield as Nuneaton, Tamworth, Solihull and Sutton Coldfield.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Q)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt; &lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;Do Waters &amp;amp; Co. offer properties suitable for 1st time buyers trying to get on the housing ladder?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt; Yes. We have a number of affordable properties on our books including some where it may be possible to negotiate a Gifted Deposit thereby potentially making it easier to obtain a mortgage.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Q)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;Are the prices of Waters &amp;amp; Co. properties realistic given the current climate?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt; Definitely, yes! All new properties are being valued taking into consideration the recent credit crunch, using all the comparable information available including Land Registry information and historic sales. Furthermore, many of our existing properties have been reduced in price as the majority of our Sellers are heeding our advice and being realistic if they truly want to sell in this difficult marketplace.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Q)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;Why are Waters &amp;amp; Co. achieving so may sales?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt; Simply, we are prepared to go the “extra mile”. We are highly proactive and communicate with our Sellers on a regular basis, particularly regarding viewer feedback so that we can build on this information in order to generate offers. We also offer an ‘accompanied viewing’ service whenever a Seller requests it or where we feel it appropriate. This helps us to gauge what our registered Buyers are really looking for so we can direct them to the most appropriate houses.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Q)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;So how do Waters &amp;amp; Co. generate the viewings?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt; We are confident that we have the largest up to date mailing list in the area; compiled from many sources such as Internet referrals and from the high volume of people who visit our High Street office. Often, existing clients of Waters &amp;amp; Co. Solicitors consult with us regarding matters that include buying another property following a divorce or inheritance. Rather unusually, we not only contact potential buyers on our mailing list by telephone, we also post out sales particulars. Whilst we know this isn’t cost effective for us, we recognise that the professional appearance of our sales particulars does have an impact and generates individual attention to a particular property.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Q)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;How can I be sure that Waters &amp;amp; Co. will negotiate the best possible price?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt; Our aim is to achieve an offer that the Buyer is willing to pay and the Seller is willing to accept so both parties feel that they have entered into a fair and reasonable transaction. Ultimately, if a Buyer believes he is paying too much for a property, he may reduce his offer weeks later or even withdraw from the sale completely. Similarly, if a Seller is under the impression that he has undersold the property, he may not be prepared to compromise in the event of an adverse Survey; therefore it is imperative that a price is negotiated that both Buyers and Sellers are comfortable with.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Q)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;Once a buyer has been found, what does Waters &amp;amp; Co. do to ensure the sale runs smoothly?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt; Even before accepting an offer, the Buyer’s chain is thoroughly checked to reduce the possibility of the chain breaking prior to completion. Thereafter, we work tirelessly behind the scenes, continually progressing the sale through communication with all parties. As solicitors and Estate Agents working together under one roof, we are best placed to identify, understand and assess at an early stage should problems arise and can respond accordingly. Consequently, the small percentage of our transactions that do break down is significantly lower than the national average.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Q)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;Are Waters &amp;amp; Co. able to offer a One Stop Shop for sellers?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt; As the areas most successful firm of Estate Agents, we offer a free Market Appraisal and, once instructed, we prepare the sales particulars and the Energy Performance Certificate. After a buyer has been found, we undertake the legal work using highly experienced Conveyancers, based at the same local High Street office, supported by sophisticated conveyancing software. This, of course, speeds up the whole house selling process and speed is vital in today’s difficult market.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Q)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;To summarise, what makes Waters &amp;amp; Co. different from other Estate Agents?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt; No-one understands all aspects of the housing market as we do. Our standards of professionalism are second to none. We are controlled by the highest standards of the Law Society and Solicitors Regulation Authority, plus the National Association of Estate Agents so we can be trusted to deal fairly and honestly with our clients.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;Q)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:0;"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;Finally, what makes Waters &amp;amp; Co. the leading Estate Agent in the area?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold"&gt;A)&lt;/span&gt; What you see is what you get. We are large enough to cope but small enough to care. We ensure that our personal service results in really satisfied Buyers and Sellers. Testimony to this are the numerous “thank you” cards and word-of-mouth recommendations which make all our efforts worthwhile.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;Updated June 2010&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="TEXT-ALIGN: right"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;span style="FONT-STYLE: italic"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-8432527689922587162?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/8432527689922587162'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/8432527689922587162'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/waters-co-profile.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-127201877990911438</id><published>2009-01-15T06:47:00.001-08:00</published><updated>2010-02-09T06:40:30.915-08:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Testimonials&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; width: 260px; height: 238px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/S3FusF79PmI/AAAAAAAAARQ/pr-EUbKfLGI/s400/230416712a2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436247928999853666" border="0" /&gt;The majority of our work comes from recommendations and we believe this is a testament to the excellent service which we strive to offer.  Here are just a handful of quotes from the many cards received from our clients which makes us extremely proud of our achievements for them:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" &gt;“Thank you for all your help during the short time it took you to sell our property in Coleshill. During these difficult times, it would have been very easy for Waters and Co. to treat our property as 'just another house on the market'; however, from the time that we met Jon, the regular updates from Gill in the office and the subsequent transactions that were overseen by Lesley and Teresa, we have felt at all times that we were in the hands of a professional and caring organisation.”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;T &amp;amp; DB (Spain)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" &gt;“Just a short note to thank you and your staff for the excellent, professional and personal service we received during our recent sale/purchase (a special thanks to Lynda who is also very ‘on the ball’).  When we decide to move again we will have no hesitation in selecting your firm to represent us again.  We will continue to highly recommend your firm to others.  Thank you for an excellent representation.”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;C &amp;amp; RD&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" &gt;“A sincere thank you for the stress-free way you have handled the sale of our house.  It was a pleasure dealing with you.”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;J &amp;amp; BN&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" &gt;“We have moved into our new house in Water Orton and would like to express our sincere thanks to Jon, Teresa and the team at Waters &amp;amp; Co. for enabling this to happen!”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;GF &amp;amp; AR&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" &gt;“I would like to thank you and your staff for all your efforts during the sale of my late mothers’ property in Coleshill.  In particular, many thanks to Teresa and the estimable Jon.  All of my phone calls and e-mails were returned promptly and courteously, something which is sadly no longer the norm in daily commerce!  I wish you a successful future business and thank you once again.”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;BM (USA)&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" &gt;“Thank you for the efficient and professional service you gave us whilst dealing with our move.  You really are a credit to the service.”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=";font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;"  &gt;A &amp;amp; SL&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" &gt;“Many thanks for all your help and guidance, it was much appreciated and we shall definitely be recommending you to our friends!”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;MW &amp;amp; MP&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" &gt;“You have recently completed the sale and conveyancing of our property in Curdworth.  In a marketplace that is fraught with dishonesty, deviance and misappropriation you and your team have truly shone through.  The service from start to finish from yourself, Amanda and Lesley, has been exemplary.  You have taken all of the trauma away from the house selling experience and replaced it with a true ‘finger on the button’ professionalism.  I sincerely commend you at Waters &amp;amp; Co. and will at every opportunity recommend your services unequivocally.  Furthermore, all of this at less than half the cost of other competitors!  A saving in our case of several thousands of pounds.  Brilliant!  I wish you all great success and I am sure a very prosperous future.”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;R &amp;amp; JH&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:100%;" &gt;“Just like to say a big thank you to yourself, Lynda, Lesley and Amanda for all your help and service over the last few months dealing with the sale of my father’s house, it is nice to have such good service.  I am sure I will be in touch for something else soon.”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;DT&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: left;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;February 2010&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-127201877990911438?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/127201877990911438'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/127201877990911438'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/testimonials.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/S3FusF79PmI/AAAAAAAAARQ/pr-EUbKfLGI/s72-c/230416712a2.jpg' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-4659032793778561934</id><published>2009-01-13T07:34:00.001-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:08:50.751-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;A Guide to Getting a Divorce&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;The prospect of divorce action can be daunting, but the process can be eased with the right professional advice.  Waters &amp;amp; Co., is here to guide you, steer you clear of the pitfalls and offer sensitive but practical advice, whether you are petitioner (starting the proceedings) or respondent (receiving the proceedings).&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Obtaining a Divorce&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;You will only be granted a divorce if you can demonstrate that your marriage has suffered an “irretrievable breakdown”.  To do this you must show that your marriage is beyond repair because one of the following facts applies:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;ol style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;your spouse has committed adultery; or&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;your spouse’s behaviour is such that you cannot reasonably be expected to live with him or her; or&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;your spouse left you at least two years ago without good reason and refuses to return; or&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;you have been separated from your spouse for two years and he or she agrees to a divorce; or&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;you have been separated from your spouse for five years or more (when no consent is needed)&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ol&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Divorce Process&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The legal formality of getting a divorce is relatively straightforward.  What is generally much less straightforward is sorting out the practical issues associated with divorce, such as where each person will live, who gets what, who will pay what during the process and arrangements for any children.  Before agreeing matters with your spouse, it is wise to take advice from a solicitor about your rights and the options available to you.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Initial Letter&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The person making the application for divorce is known as “the petitioner” and the person they are divorcing is “the respondent”.  If you are applying for the divorce, we will usually start the process by writing a letter to your spouse to tell them that you are planning to start divorce action.  This letter will also recommend that your spouse gets independent legal advice if they have not done so already.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Divorce Petition&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We will prepare the petition and send it to the court.  The petition sets out (amongst other things) whether you will be asking your spouse to pay the costs of the divorce and/or provide financial support for you and/or the children.  The court will send a copy of the petition to the spouse for his/her solicitor inviting a reply within seven days.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once your spouse or his/her solicitor has replied to the petition, you will need to confirm your intention to go ahead with the divorce application by making a sworn statement or “affidavit” confirming the truth of the petition.  Your application is then lodged with the court for consideration by a District Judge.  If your spouse does not reply or cannot be found, we will tell you the methods for overcoming this.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Statement of Arrangements for Children&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you have children under the age of 16 (or between 16 and 18 in full-time education), you will need to fill in a form called a “statement of arrangements for children”.  This asks for details about your children such as:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;ul style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;who they will live with&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;what your plans for them are, including any arrangements for visits by, or contact with, the other parent&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;When the court comes to consider the divorce papers, it will take this information into account to make sure that the children are properly provided for.  If not satisfied, the divorce process will be put on hold.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Decree Nisi&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once the court is satisfied as to the arrangements for children and that you are entitled to a divorce, it sets a date and time for the judge to pronounce the “decree nisi”.  You are not actually divorced at this stage.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If at this point you and your spouse have not agreed who should pay the legal costs of the divorce, the judge pronouncing the decree nisi will make the decision for you.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Decree Absolute&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Six weeks after the decree nisi, the petitioner can have the divorce made “absolute”.  This legally dissolves the marriage.  However, it is usually better to wait until financial matters (“ancillary relief”) have been settled before applying for the decree absolute.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Disagreements&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Disagreements generally relate to:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;ul style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;money&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;property; or&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;contact with children&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;Solicitors have a professional duty to settle these out of court if at all possible.  It is in the interests of both parties to co-operate with this aim.  We will explain to you the alternatives to court action, such as mediation.  Non-cooperation slows everything down and increases costs on both sides.  In an extreme case, a non-cooperative party can be ordered to pay some or all of the other spouses costs.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If an out of court settlement cannot be negotiated, either party can apply to the court to settle the matter.  The court will do all it can to encourage you to negotiate an agreement, failing this the judge will make a decision.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Recording Agreement&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;However you go about reaching an agreement with your spouse on the terms of the divorce, we can give you advice on the best way to record what you have agreed.  If divorce action is already under way, we will usually advise you to opt for a court order which will set out the terms of the agreement clearly and in a way that is legally enforceable.  If you have not yet started action for divorce, we might advise making a “separation agreement”.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Children&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In all matters relating to children, the children’s welfare comes before anything else.  We will:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;ul style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;emphasise how cooperating with your spouse will benefit your children&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;warn against the dangers of encouraging children to take sides&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;encourage you to consider what you plan to tell your children about the marriage breakdown&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;make you aware of the alternatives to court proceedings, such as mediation&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;discourage court action as a way of settling disagreements except as a “last resort”; and&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;treat all matters relating to children as confidential&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Costs&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We can usually give an estimate for the costs of the actual divorce process ie from initial instructions to decree absolute.  For property and financial matters, however, costs will vary depending upon the difficulty of the case.  We are competitive although price is not the only issue.  It is perhaps more important that you find a solicitor who is approachable and sympathetic, and whose advice you understand.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;What We Offer&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you instruct Waters &amp;amp; Co., you can expect to receive the following:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;ul style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;we will be constructive rather than confrontational when dealing with your spouse&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;we will ensure that you understand that the best interests of any child should be put first&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;we will encourage the attitude that a family dispute is not a contest in which there is a winner and a loser, but rather that it is a search for fair solutions&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;we will avoid inflaming often already high emotions&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;we will remain objective and not allow personal opinions to influence our advice; and&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;we will make you aware of the likely legal costs at the outset, and advise you of the benefits or merits of any step balanced against the costs as the matter proceeds&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Fixed Fee Consultation&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Please telephone 01675 463855 or e-mail &lt;a style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);" href="mailto:office@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;office@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt; for information regarding a fixed fee consultation lasting up to 60 minutes.  At this meeting, your particular situation will be discussed which will result in you becoming much better informed in respect of where you stand and what steps are available to you.  It is your choice then whether you commence divorce proceedings or not.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;February 2009&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-4659032793778561934?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/4659032793778561934'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/4659032793778561934'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/matrimonial.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-2031031634897216339</id><published>2009-01-13T07:33:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:09:06.131-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Renting a Property&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:100%;" &gt;A Guide For Both Landlords and Tenants&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;The Key To Peace Of Mind&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Renting out your property may seem like an easy source of income, but it can also be a legal minefield.  Disagreements between landlord and tenant can quickly become a drain on your time and resources.  The best way to avoid this is to take legal advice at the start.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Waters &amp;amp; Co. can help with all areas of landlord and tenant law and, before agreeing to allow a tenant into a property, a landlord should seek advice from us so a tenancy agreement can be tailored to your needs.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Tenancy Agreements&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A tenancy agreement is a contract between the landlord and the tenant.  This contract can be written or verbal.  In England and Wales there is no law to say a tenancy agreement must be in writing, but it is a good idea that it is.  There are now special arrangements which have to be considered in respect of a landlord taking a deposit and details of this ought to be in writing.  If there is a dispute about the terms of the agreement, it is one person’s word against another if there is no written agreement in place.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The main advantage of having a written tenancy agreement is that it sets out the rights and responsibilities of both landlord and tenant in a way that is legally enforceable.  This keeps disagreements to a minimum because both sides know where they stand.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Assured Shorthold Tenancy&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Generally, all residential lettings nowadays are Assured Shorthold Tenancies which means a landlord can obtain possession if the right procedures are followed, although an agreement can be extended by consent.  Waters &amp;amp; Co. can offer the following:-&lt;br /&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;Draw up an assured shorthold tenancy agreement&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Highlight the essential requirements and terms of your tenancy agreement&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Explain any related legal issues&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Warn you of any pitfalls, including advice on how to end an agreement&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Give you advice on the type of tenant references to seek&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Explain your rights and responsibilities as a landlord or tenant&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Advise on the current deposit regulations&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Drawing Up An An Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We will draw up a document to meet your needs once you have provided us with your detailed instructions such as:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;How many tenants will live in the property together with their full names and present addresses and how long the tenancy is to last&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;What restrictions, if any, the landlord wants to place on the tenants about keeping pets, playing music and other matters which may be necessary to avoid any breach of any freehold covenants or lease terms which already legally bind the property&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;What the starting rent will be, when it must be paid, penalties for late payment, rent increases and whether council tax and fuel are included in the rent&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;What deposit is to be paid and what deposit scheme will be utilised&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Whether the property is to be furnished in which case a full inventory must be attached to the agreement, preferably with a brief note as to the condition of each item&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Bank details for the rental payments&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Using The Agreement&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Once the form of the tenancy agreement is agreed, both the landlord and tenant(s) should sign it before the start of the tenancy.  It is advisable to provide a copy to the tenant.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Related Matters&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We will give you advice and guidance on broader issues involved in being a landlord including tax liability and what to do if the property you want to rent is mortgaged.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Costs&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Charges can vary depending upon the complexity of the tenancy agreement.  Please telephone us on 01675 463855 for further guidance or e-mail &lt;a style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);" href="mailto:teresa@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;teresa@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt; for an appointment.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;February 2009&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-2031031634897216339?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2031031634897216339'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2031031634897216339'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/landlord-and-tenant.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-439014355048383561</id><published>2008-12-23T06:22:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:10:15.206-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Is a Promise Made in Life Still Binding in Death?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;When promises are made but not kept, the law does not always provide redress for a disappointed person. As a recent judgment by the Court of Appeal illustrates, when someone dies without making it clear, by a will, who should inherit his estate, this can result in an outcome very different from that which the deceased person intended, warns Teresa Waters, Partner at Waters &amp;amp; Co., Solicitors.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In 2007 the High Court initially ruled that a farmer, who helped a relative run his farm for more than 20 years should be awarded the property, even though there was no will to this effect. David Thorner started helping his cousin, Peter Thorner, run his 400 acre farm in Somerset when Peter began to suffer from ill health. What was, at first, a temporary measure became a lifetime of commitment, and David spent the next 25 years working on the farm, without taking a holiday, and, sometimes, working up to 18 hours a day. He was never paid for his work, surviving on a modest allowance from his parents.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Peter Thorner had revoked a will he had made in 1997, in order to exclude a beneficiary he had fallen out with.  He never made another. The will had left the farm, and most of his estate, to David. On Peter’s death in 2005, as no will could be found, the laws of intestacy applied so the estate passed to the nearest relatives.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In the High Court, David argued that the two men had an understanding that, on Peter’s death, David would inherit the farm and it would therefore be unfair to divide the estate according to the intestacy laws. The Court initially accepted this argument, and awarded him the farm and the agricultural assets. Non-agricultural assets of approximately £1m were awarded to Peter’s relatives.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Two of Peter’s sisters, and a niece, were not happy with this decision and appealed against it. Three appeal judges have now ruled that, although David had a ‘strong moral claim’ to the property, that claim should not have been upheld and it would be a ‘dangerous precedent’ for him to inherit the property. Whatever Peter Thorner’s wishes were, there was no evidence that he had made a firm promise to David that he would inherit the farm.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Permission to appeal to the House of Lords was refused and David Thorner was ordered to pay the claimants legal costs.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“Peter Thorner’s failure to leave a valid will resulted in years of expensive legal wrangling. All of that expenditure was avoidable. Anyone who has assets and is intestate, should understand the benefits of making, or the consequences of not making, a will. The laws of intestacy are often not fair and, as is illustrated in this case, a moral claim, however strong, is not a legal right,” advises Teresa Waters.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Waters &amp;amp; Co., is still participating in The Institute of Cancer Research “Will for Free” scheme which is open to those aged 50 or over (it does not cover tax planning schemes).  If you do not have a Will and qualify, please telephone Teresa Waters at Waters &amp;amp; Co. on 01675 463855 for an appointment.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The information contained in this newsletter was prepared in September 2008 and is intended for general guidance only.  It provides information in a concise form and is not a substitute for obtaining legal advice.  If you would like advice specific to your circumstances, please arrange for an appointment to discuss.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-439014355048383561?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/439014355048383561'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/439014355048383561'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2008/12/is-promice-made-in-life-still-binding.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-3641602477961678215</id><published>2008-12-23T06:20:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:13:19.762-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Taxman in Buy To Let Probe&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;Buy to Let landlords remain confident about the future despite the current fall-out from the credit crunch, according to research carried out by the National Association of Landlords (NLA).  The NLA found that 23% of landlords intend to expand their portfolio over the next five years.  A further 60% intend to maintain their current portfolios over the same period.  Fewer than 18% said they would reduce their holdings and only 2.4% said they would abandon the private rented sector completely.  It is encouraging to see that confidence remains strong.  However, it is important that investors should be aware of the legal requirements involved in buy to let.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Landlords need to be aware that they require a licence from the Local Authority if they want to rent out homes for multiple occupation such as student flats.  The Housing Act also places obligations on landlords to ensure their properties are safe, secure and free from hazards.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;New landlords will also need to familiarise themselves with the fairly new tenancy deposit scheme, which is designed to protect a tenant’s money from unscrupulous landlords.  When a tenant pays a deposit, the landlord has 14 days to hand it over to a government approved private company.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Landlords also need to be aware that HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has launched hundreds of investigations into the tax affairs of taxpayers they believe have under-declared or failed to declare taxable income from their buy to let activities.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;2000 investors are expected to be targeted in a drive to identify taxpayers who have failed to declare investment income. It is thought that the first wave of enquiry letters includes many sent to taxpayers who have already sold their buy to let properties and therefore probably thought it unlikely that their under-declarations would be discovered.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Where the evasion of tax is wilful (i.e. fraudulent), HMRC can collect tax for up to 20 years after it is due, plus interest. They can also levy penalties of up to 100 per cent of the unpaid tax.  For a number of years now, HMRC has also had a useful monitoring tool, to identify potential unpaid Capital Gains Tax, via the Stamp Duty Land Tax form which has to be submitted, upon completion of the majority of property transactions.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The HMRC probe is in addition to their usual enquiries in this area, which focus on excessive expense claims and, in particular, on whether taxpayers have wrongly claimed their mortgage payments in full, as opposed to just the interest, as a tax deduction. Only the interest element of a mortgage is allowable as a deduction for Income Tax purposes, not the capital element.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Tax Inspectors are now taking a much more uncompromising attitude, possibly due to the influence of the “Customs” side of HMRC, following the merger of the Customs and Excise and the Inland Revenue.  Customs Officers have traditionally dealt with people whose activities are criminal and their Inspectors, as a matter of course, adopted a very robust attitude to dealing with taxpayers since they were given the job of supervising the collection of VAT.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Proof of the increasing difficulty in negotiating with HMRC can be seen in the rapidly increasing number of taxpayers who appeal against the decisions of HMRC Officers to the VAT and Duties Tribunal and Special Commissioners of Tax.  The number of such appeals rose from 2,014 in 2002 to 3,146 in 2006.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The 2008 Budget contains provisions which give HMRC Officers significant new powers to obtain information concerning the financial affairs of taxpayers, including the right to require third parties to provide information and making the failure to provide that information, in certain circumstances, a criminal offence&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you are engaged in a dispute with HMRC, you should ensure that you have the benefit of professional advice and do not compromise your position if you have to go to a Tribunal.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The information contained in this newsletter was prepared in May 2008 and is intended for general guidance only.  It provides information in a concise form and is not a substitute for obtaining legal advice.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-3641602477961678215?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/3641602477961678215'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/3641602477961678215'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2008/12/taxman-in-buy-to-let-probe.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-4758471838411694673</id><published>2008-12-23T06:17:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:12:15.562-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Farmer Who Worked For Free Gains Share of Will&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;When promises are made but not kept, the law often provides no redress for the disappointed person, as a recent case involving a couple who looked after a friend demonstrates.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The couple looked after their friend when he became unable to care for himself, and they helped him deal with his affairs. He offered them the use of two properties he owned, which they accepted. Over the ensuing years, they decorated and maintained the properties and even carried out improvements to one of them. The man told the couple that he intended to leave the properties to them when he died and also made other people aware that this was his intention. He signed a document to that effect, but it was not a valid will and he died legally intestate. At the point at which the man died, the properties were worth £280,000.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The couple applied for the title to the properties to be transferred to them. When their request was refused, they went to court claiming that the man’s promise had created a ‘constructive trust’ for them and that they were entitled to the properties because they had acted to their own detriment on account of the man’s promise. Where a person acts to their own detriment on the basis of a promise made by another person, it may be possible to mount a successful claim.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;However, the court rejected the couple’s claim. There was, in the mind of the judge, an insufficient link between the promise and the couple’s detriment to allow them to benefit, except by way of compensation for their expenditure and a small amount for their disappointment. Accordingly, an award of £20,000 was made. The couple appealed, claiming that there was, in effect, a bargain between them and the man, which the court should uphold.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Court of Appeal concluded that the man’s offer of property for use was not accompanied by a requirement that the couple carry out the acts for which they claimed compensation, so there was no ‘bargain’. Nor was there any ground for the assumption that receipt of properties worth £280,000 was in proportion to the detriment that the couple had suffered. The claim was therefore rejected.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The couple were no doubt disappointed, but relying on stated intention in such cases is a very risky strategy. The sensible thing to do is to make sure that the correct paperwork is put in place to give effect to the owner’s intention. Creating the documentation needed to transfer property or writing a will is both quick and inexpensive.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As a comparison to the failed attempt described above, a farmer who helped a relative run his farm for more than 20 years has been awarded ownership of the farm.  David Thorner was the son of Peter Thorner’s cousin. He helped Peter to run his 400 acre farm when Peter began to suffer from ill health. What started as a temporary measure became a lifetime of commitment, as David spent the next 25 years working on the farm without taking a holiday and sometimes working up to 18 hours a day. He was never paid for his work, only receiving a modest allowance from his parents.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The two men had an understanding that on Peter’s death, David would inherit the farm. However, Peter destroyed the will he had made in 1997, which left the farm and most of his estate to David, and never made another. This appears to have occurred because Peter had a falling-out with one of the other beneficiaries under the will. On Peter’s death in 2005, no will could be found, so the laws of intestacy applied. In such cases, the estate passes to the nearest relatives, who in this case were Peter’s nieces.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;David relied on the principle of estoppel – in essence that it would be unfair to divide the estate according to the intestacy laws. He argued that the result of Peter’s not having made a new Will, led to the unfair result that David would not inherit the farm as per their agreement. The claim was defended on the basis that there was no promise as such that David should inherit the farm and thus, if he had any claim at all for having provision made for him out of the estate, it would be a much lesser amount. The court heard a great deal of evidence that Peter had an ‘indirect’ way of saying things – for example, saying, “What are you doing tomorrow?”, when what he meant was “Can you help me tomorrow?” This was claimed to account for the lack of direct evidence for Peter’s promise.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;David applied to the court for provision out of the estate and was successful in his claim. The Court awarded the ‘non-agricultural’ assets of approximately £1m to the nieces and the farm to David.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Peter’s failure to leave a valid will meant that the family faced two years of uncertainty and legal wrangling over his estate. All of that expenditure was avoidable. If you have a relative who has assets and is intestate, they may not realise the benefits of making or the consequences of not making a will. The laws of intestacy are often not fair, and in this case, had David not made a challenge, the whole of the estate would have passed to family members, who had had very little to do with the deceased during his lifetime.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The information contained in this newsletter was prepared in May 2008 and is intended for general guidance only.  It provides information in a concise form and is not a substitute for obtaining legal advice.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-4758471838411694673?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/4758471838411694673'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/4758471838411694673'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2008/12/farmer-who-challenged-will.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-8148092858484151834</id><published>2008-12-23T06:14:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:07:26.876-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Coleshill In Bloom 2008&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; width: 225px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SVEQlPMqaUI/AAAAAAAAABA/StKLYcY35Ao/s200/DSCF8781.JPG" /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;The Coleshill in Bloom Window Display Competition judge, Elizabeth Buck, had difficulty picking an outright winner as she found herself with two favourites.  In the end she announced them joint winners, one of which was Waters &amp;amp; Co. Solicitors and Estate Agents.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“We are absolutely thrilled.  We hope our efforts contribute to another Gold Medal for the town when the results are announced in September” said Teresa Waters, a Partner in the firm.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“Everyone chipped in with ideas and practical help and, with all the doom and gloom about the economy, it has been a refreshing change to just do something for fun.  Our window attracted many extra visitors looking at our model village based (with some artistic licence) on Coleshill Town.  Hopefully, they spared a glance at our properties for sale at the same time,” added Teresa.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The model village was a miniature of the short run of High Street shops where Waters &amp;amp; Co. are based plus the Church, with bride and groom on the steps.  There were also some miniature houses with small “For Sale” and “Sold” signs in their gardens.  The road between the houses and shops was dotted with some Dinky cars and miniature people, including a family crossing the pedestrian crossing, and a lady looking at the houses displayed in Waters &amp;amp; Co’s window.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;“The window display was a team effort” explained Teresa, “Jonathan Cooke, our Estate Agency Manager, took the photographs of the shops and our For Sale board and miniaturised them on the computer; Amanda Murtagh, Conveyancing Assistant, provided a large number of the ornamental houses from her personal collection; Mandy Sparrow, Legal Secretary provided the Dinky cars from her four son’s large collection; Gill Barry, Sales Negotiator, assisted with the floral displays; Lesley Snowdon, Conveyancing Manager, plus Lynda Robinson, Personal Assistant and myself set about making the properties, laying out the design and dressing the window”.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Thank you Waters &amp;amp; Co. for your sterling effort in supporting Coleshill in Bloom.  Anything which helps to make Coleshill a brighter and better place to work, live and shop must be worthwhile.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Visit &lt;a style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);" target="_blank" href="http://www.coleshillinbloom.org.uk/"&gt;www.coleshillinbloom.org.uk&lt;/a&gt; for further information.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;December 2008&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-8148092858484151834?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/8148092858484151834'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/8148092858484151834'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2008/12/coleshill-in-bloom-winners.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SVEQlPMqaUI/AAAAAAAAABA/StKLYcY35Ao/s72-c/DSCF8781.JPG' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-1567168112071975638</id><published>2008-12-23T06:01:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:12:31.456-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Update on the Inheritance Tax regime and “Will for Free” Scheme&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;The changes in Inheritance Tax (IHT) announced in the October pre-budget report recognised that many people, of modest means, were falling into a tax regime originally designed to affect only the rich.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The changes – hailed widely as a ‘doubling of the IHT nil rate band’ – were seized upon with great enthusiasm. On closer inspection, however, there seems less to cheer about than was first thought.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Firstly, the IHT nil rate band will not be doubled, except in cases in which two spouses or civil partners die in the same tax year. In other cases, the amount available on the second death will be the amount of the IHT nil rate band in the tax year in which the second death occurs plus an amount calculated on the proportion, if any, of the IHT nil rate band which was not used up on the first death.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The first problem arising here is that unless past records have been retained, it might be difficult to know what the value of the earlier estate was and hence the value of the unused nil rate band. This would be especially so if the value of the estate was low enough to make the filing of an Inheritance Tax Return unnecessary. Also, where the IHT nil rate band was largely used up on the first death (and the nil rate band amounts were much lower in the middling past) the ‘extra’ relief could be rather small. In any circumstances, the maximum nil band available on the second death is twice the single nil rate band.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Secondly, the new limits will apply only to spouses and civil partners. Cohabiting couples (presumably because a review of the law relating to them is ongoing) obtain no benefit from these proposals and no nil rate band is transferred between them. Indeed, they will not even inherit each other’s estates unless they have wills.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We at Waters &amp;amp; Co. are concernrd that people will seize on the IHT changes as a reason for neither making a will nor undertaking planning to preserve family wealth and will, unnecessarily, end up transferring assets to the State, rather than their family.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Everyone should make a Will, for the avoidance of any doubt, and to ensure that loved ones are not left with problems.  It is extremely difficult for a person to challenge a Will prepared by a Solicitor.  This is not the case in respect of a home made Will or a Will written by Will Writers and they can often also fail for uncertainty.  Waters &amp;amp; Co., has experienced many home made Wills which have failed and have been the cause of enormous family disharmony.  A recent case involved a home made Will which failed because the two witnesses had not actually been present together when the lady signed it!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Waters &amp;amp; Co., is participating in The Institute of Cancer Research Will for Free scheme which is open to those aged 50 or over (it does not involve the cost of tax planning schemes).  If you do not have a Will and qualify please telephone Teresa Waters at Waters &amp;amp; Co. on  01675 463855 for an appointment.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The information contained in this article was prepared in February 2008 and is intended for general guidance only.  It provides information in a concise form and is not a substitute for obtaining legal advice.  If you would like advice specific to your circumstances, please arrange for an appointment to discuss.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-1567168112071975638?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/1567168112071975638'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/1567168112071975638'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2008/12/inheritance-tax.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-7505371644599582859</id><published>2008-12-23T05:48:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:11:53.850-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;The McCartney Split and Others&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;The much-publicised divorce of Sir Paul McCartney and Heather Mills has led to an award to Ms Mills of £24.3 million. Press speculation was rife that she might be awarded anything up to £60 million from Sir Paul’s fortune, which is estimated to be £400 million – the figure presented by his side in the proceedings and accepted by the court. Ms Mills, who represented herself, claims that he is worth £800 million.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;What is significant about the judgment is that the award is based only on the “needs” of Ms Mills and the couple’s daughter. The implication of this is that the judge clearly considered that Ms Mills had added nothing of significance to the wealth of the McCartney household during their four years of marriage.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The decision contrasts with the July 2007 divorce of insurance magnate John Charman and his wife Beverley, who received £48 million from Mr Charman’s £130 million-plus fortune.  The difference between the cases in legal terms is that Mrs Charman was considered to have made a ‘special contribution’ to the couple’s 28 year marriage and to the acquisition of marital assets during that time compared with that made by Ms Mills during her four year marriage to the former Beatle.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The McCartney settlement follows a recent case in which a thrice-divorced woman, on marrying for the fourth time, had signed a pre-nuptial agreement that in the event of divorce neither she nor her husband would make any financial claim against the other.  She sensibly withdrew her claim for a share of her ex-husband’s fortune when the couple divorced, after the judge issued a preliminary ruling that the pre-nuptial agreement would be of material importance to the case.  It would have been foolhardy to continue in the face of such a clear indication.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The courts are clearly looking much more closely, not only at the stated intentions of people going into a marriage, but also at their relative contributions to the wealth created during the marriage. This does not mean that a ‘stay at home’ spouse will necessarily receive a small settlement. If she/he can demonstrate that she/he provided the environment and support which enabled or assisted the ‘go getter’ to amass wealth, then there is every chance of her/him being awarded a significant proportion of the marital assets, particularly if the marriage has lasted many years.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Another factor the court may well consider is the wealth brought into the marriage by each party.  By and large, the ‘non-marital assets’ are divided in the proportion in which each spouse or civil partner introduced them.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Waters &amp;amp; Co., advises those embarking upon divorce or separation to seek the services of a legal professional.  Solicitors can help to ensure the best outcome for the parties involved, generally without the need for a Court hearing.  Litigants in person (those who represent themselves in Court) will often come up against the opposite party’s solicitor, which can be intimidating and is hardly an even match.  Having your own “legal knight” to represent your cause will help boost your chances of a fair outcome.  A solicitor is better able to deal with the paperwork involved in a divorce.  Whilst the DIY approach might seem attractive, even in straightforward cases, it is safer to, at least, get a solicitor to check everything is covered.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The legal process of getting a divorce is a relatively straightforward one.  What is generally much less straightforward is sorting out the practical issues associated with a divorce, such as where each person will live, who gets what, and arrangements for children.  Before agreeing matters with your husband or wife, it is wise to take advice from a solicitor about your rights, the options available to you and the principles to be applied in the light of statute and case law.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The law applies identically for civil partners: as yet there has not been a dissolution of a civil partnership where great wealth is involved (at least not one that has gone to court and been reported).&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The information contained in this newsletter was prepared in April 2008 and is intended for general guidance only.  It provides information in a concise form and is not a substitute for obtaining legal advice.  If you would like advice specific to your circumstances, please arrange for an appointment to discuss.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-7505371644599582859?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/7505371644599582859'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/7505371644599582859'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2008/12/implications-for-divorcing-couples.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-2527966051310631216</id><published>2008-12-23T04:36:00.001-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:08:31.388-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Conveyancing&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; width: 400px; height: 220px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/Sf_2H3lDgqI/AAAAAAAAADQ/ZnbkiwozD_I/s400/teresa.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332251098868843170" border="1" /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:78%;"&gt;Teresa Waters, Solicitor Partner with Lesley Snowdon, Conveyancing Manager&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;A large percentage of our fee income is attributable to conveyancing and, in today's marketplace, we must carry it out fast and profitably if we are to survive as High Street solicitors.  It is said (by the uninitiated) that there is nothing to conveyancing work and most of it could be carried out by a trained monkey. In reality, although much of the work is routine, conveyancing imposes a heavy responsibility on solicitors and gives rise to more claims against the profession's indemnity insurers than any other area of work. The trouble is that negligent work seldom shows up until years later.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;To enable us to offer the kind of swift, efficient and competitively priced service today's public expects, we installed a top-class residential conveyancing software package on our PC's some time ago. The cost of both hardware and software has been repaid many times over. Successive Governments have muttered about finding ways to speed up the conveyancing process.  The truth is, there is nothing wrong with the existing system, but the public needs to be told how to make use of it, and it is up to solicitors to tell them. As an example, once the decision is made to sell a house, the seller should instruct both estate agent &lt;u&gt;and&lt;/u&gt;              solicitor, and not wait to tell the solicitor until a buyer has been found. If told early enough, the solicitor can ensure that the contract and supporting paperwork are ready to go out to the buyers' solicitors as soon as a buyer is found. By the same token, when buying, tell the solicitor the moment the offer is accepted and do not wait until he hears the news from the selling agents, as they often do not send out the memo of sale until days after the bargain has been struck              (subject to contract, of course).&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Commercial conveyancing is essentially the same process as residential, but some different matters need to be considered, and it takes our kind of experience to know what to look for. Landlord and Tenant work is generally grouped under the description of conveyancing and that is an area of law which is a positive minefield for the unwary, particularly where commercial property is concerned.  If only a lease meant what is appears to say!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Whatever the conveyancing job you want done, we are happy to give you a detailed estimate and confirm it in writing. Even if you instruct us without asking for an estimate you will still get one in our opening "Client Care" letter.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;December 2008&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-2527966051310631216?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2527966051310631216'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/2527966051310631216'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2008/12/conveyancing.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/Sf_2H3lDgqI/AAAAAAAAADQ/ZnbkiwozD_I/s72-c/teresa.jpg' height='72' width='72'/></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-8077199966916459239</id><published>2008-12-23T04:35:00.001-08:00</published><updated>2009-10-16T06:09:27.663-07:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" &gt;Partnerships&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;No formality is required for the formation of a Partnership and this lack or formality gives rise to potentially serious and sometimes terminal problems for a firm.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;Without a written Partnership Agreement your Partnership will be governed entirely by the Partnership Act of 1890 which is extremely old and can be very inflexible. We detail below some areas which highlight the vulnerability of partners who are governed by the Act alone.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;ul style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;If any one Partner gives notice to the others, the Partnership will be dissolved i.e. ended.  The notice need only be verbal and may he given in the heat of the moment or as a result of a change in temperament associated with, perhaps, alcoholism or marital disharmony, for example&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;No matter how unreasonable the notice is, the effect of dissolving the Partnership is that the bank account will be frozen and staff will be made redundant and no Partner or group of Partners has any automatic right to take over the business and continue to run it&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;The death or bankruptcy of one Partner automatically dissolves the Partnership&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Partners have no right to expel a Partner however good the cause be it theft from the firm, imprisonment or incapacity&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;These are just a few of the pitfalls which may beset a Partnership and we hope it emphasises the importance of having a written Partnership Agreement.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" &gt;December 2008&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-8077199966916459239?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/8077199966916459239'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/8077199966916459239'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2008/12/partnerships.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6423123055704935584.post-5027372727792083364</id><published>2008-12-23T04:11:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-12-18T08:28:14.713-08:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style="text-align: center;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:130%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Wills and Intestacy&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;If you have not made a Will, any property belonging to you alone or not held as joint tenants, will pass under the Intestacy Rules. The Rules may surprise you and are summarised below:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;If You Die Leaving A Spouse/Civil Partner Plus Children&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;ul style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;Your spouse/civil partner receives all your personal chattels e.g. household contents, jewellery, car etc.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Your spouse/civil partner receives property/money up to £250,000&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Half the remainder of your estate will pass to your spouse for his/her lifetime only. Upon his/her death, it will pass to the children&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;The other half of your estate will pass to the children absolutely              upon reaching 18&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;If You Die Leaving A Spouse/Civil Partner But No Children&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;ul style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;Your spouse/civil partner receives all your personal chattels e.g. household contents, jewellery, car etc.&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Your spouse/civil partner receives property/money up to £450,000&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Your spouse receives half the balance of the estate&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;The other half of the estate passes to your parents or, if they have died, to your brothers and sisters equally or to their children&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;If You Die Leaving No Spouse/Civil Partner, The Order Of Priority Will Be:&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;ol style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;Children or, if there are none...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Your parents or, if there are none...&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Brothers and sisters or their children or, if there are none...&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Through remoter relatives until it passes to the State if there is no one to inherit&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ol&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;u&gt;&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;span style="text-decoration: underline;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Unmarried Couples&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;ul style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;No guarantee that your partner will get anything&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Remarried Couples&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;ul style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;Marriage cancels any earlier Wills and children from an earlier relationship will not benefit automatically&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;&lt;u&gt;&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;"&gt;Testamentary Guardian&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;ul style="text-align: justify;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;If you and your spouse/civil partner should be killed in a car accident, for example, you should consider what would happen to the children and ensure your wishes are contained in your Will to avoid any doubt or legal wrangle&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: justify;"&gt;No matter how much family harmony there may be during your lifetime, you cannot be sure that this will always be the case and the safest way to ensure that your wishes are carried out is to have them contained in a Will.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For a straightforward basic single Will we charge £120 plus VAT and for a straightforward basic husband and wife Will £140 plus VAT for the two.  In addition, there is one £10 plus VAT fee to cover the Money Laundering process.  If you decide to proceed, please arrange to come in for a short appointment by e-mailing&lt;span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;a style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);" href="mailto:teresa@waterssolicitors.co.uk"&gt;teresa@waterssolicitors.co.uk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);"&gt; &lt;/span&gt;or calling Teresa Waters on 01675 463855.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We are also participating in the Institute of Cancer Research "Will for Free" scheme (subject to voucher availability) and, if you are over 50, you may qualify for this scheme.  Please contact us for further information and you may find that you have to pay nothing as we will be paid by the Institute of Cancer Research for our services.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" &gt;January 2009&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style="text-align: right;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:85%;"&gt;&lt;span style="font-style: italic;"&gt;◄ &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size:100%;"&gt;&lt;a href="http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2009/01/unrivalled-proposition_15.html"&gt;&lt;span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"&gt;&lt;span&gt;Return to Home Page&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6423123055704935584-5027372727792083364?l=waterssolicitors.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/5027372727792083364'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6423123055704935584/posts/default/5027372727792083364'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://waterssolicitors.blogspot.com/2008/12/wills.html' title=''/><author><name>Waters &amp;amp; Co. Estate Agents and Solicitors</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='32' height='11' src='http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Dsw8QaF-2J4/SqprcghaFpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/ETW255soyQg/S220/logo.jpg'/></author></entry></feed>
