I’m trapped in a home I can’t sell because of huge pylon towering over my back garden… it’s costing me thousands

A HOMEOWNER has said he feels “trapped” in his property after five separate buyers were denied a mortgage due to a nearby pylon. Josh Judd purchased the three-bedroom property in Wakefield, Yorkshire, for £228,000 with hopes of moving in with his young family. A homeowner says he is ‘trapped’ in a home he cannot sell due to a nearby pylon Credit: Richard Kendall, Wakefield Josh Judd, 32, has been forced to list the home with a starting bid of £180,000 Credit: SWNS A few months later, due to a change in circumstances, he put the house back on the market – only to find that buyers were unable to take out a mortgage on the house due to the proximity of the pylon. Oddly, he said he had not experienced any difficulty acquiring one himself when he bought the property in October 2022. Sign up for the Money newsletter Thank you! Josh said that five people have shown interest in the house but each time the sale has fallen through due to spooked mortgage providers. Stuck paying £900 each month on a mortgage for a property he no longer lives in, the 32-year-old said he now feels “trapped”. Buyers are not able to get mortages on the property Credit: Richard Kendall, Wakefield Josh has been stuck paying £900 a month in mortgage costs while he waits for a buyer Credit: Richard Kendall, Wakefield Five buyers have agreed to buy the house but each sale has collapsed because they cannot get a mortgage Credit: Richard Kendall, Wakefield The 32-year-old bought the property in 2022 to move in with his young family Credit: Richard Kendall, Wakefield “I’ve done everything right,” he said. “I’ve never missed a mort­gage pay­ment, but I’m pay­ing for an empty house that I can’t sell. “I don’t know where to turn any­more.” The house is now on the market for £180,000 to cash buyers only. Most read in Money Josh said that while he expected the pylon to knock off some of the property’s value, he never imagined it would make taking out a mortage impossible. “I didn’t mind living there because it’s really quiet and the pylon didn’t bother me,” he said. “But if someone had told me nobody else would be able to get a mortgage, I never woul dhave bought it.” He said that the “emotional toll” of waiting for someone to take responsibility for the situation has been hard to bear. “It’s so stressful and I can’t keep paying for a house I can’t sell. “I just want someone to take responsibility.” The family’s frustration deepened after former employees at the developer City Fields told them they were suprised the house had been built so close to the pylon. It had originally been used as the site’s sales office because it proved difficult to sell. National Grid estimate that thousands of UK properties are located within a few hundred metres of overhead transmission lines – meaning Josh’s case is hardly unusual. There is currently no law in place to prevent developers from building new homes near pylons, although UK policy recommends that properties are located at least 50 metres from power lines. Wakefield council claimed planning for the housing development took into account the pylons and infrastructure that were present when the application was approved. Northern Powergrid said the tower was correctly assessed and installed. A spokesperson for Emsleys – the conveyancing solicitors who acted in the purchase – said: “Solicitors do not typically visit a property as part of their service; they rely entirely on the client being happy to proceed with what they can see. “In addition, they would not advise on the valuation of a property nor the suitability of a mortgage or any other financial arrangements.” Comment now