Sarah Futcher

After being in the Building Society industry for 23 years, Sarah changed career and qualified as a solicitor in 2009 having trained with Tolhurst Fisher. She became a partner in the commercial department in 2018.

Having been involved in the sale and purchase of small businesses from early on in her time with Tolhurst Fisher, Sarah has dealt with a wide spectrum of different types of business transfers over the years ranging from nail bars, cafes and hairdressers right up to larger licensed businesses such as restaurants and residential care homes employing 20 or more staff.

With an approachable and understanding persona, Sarah is able to guide clients through what can often be an emotional and stressful time, particularly where a business has been built up over very many years. Sarah prides herself on being pro-active and diligent to ensure that transactions proceed swiftly and smoothly in order to meet deadlines. Sarah also has extensive experience in commercial property transactions acting for vendors, purchasers, landlords and tenants.

Professional Summary
– Business/Asset Sales and Purchases
– Share sale sales and purchases
– Leases – new, assignments, renewals acting for landlord and tenant
– Freehold and leasehold sales and purchases
– Mortgages – acting for borrowers and lenders and separate representation for banks and building societies
– Private Lending – drawing up loan agreements and legal charges

Personal Summary
– A lifetime resident of Southend, Sarah has a keen interest in the town and its local history and ancestry
– Property renovation and interior design
– Traveling

Case Studies
1. Lease – A family business established in the town for over 100 years made the decision to close its doors and trade exclusively on-line. The owners wanted to retain the building, which is on a renowned High Street and is listed, as an investment and let it out to a charity. Sarah undertook the necessary work to for the parties to enter into a lease once the charity had obtained planning permission to change the use of the property and to grant a lease of part back to the owners to enable them to occupy a floor of the building from which it could run its online business.

2. Mortgage – Sarah acted for one of the largest High Street banks in the refinance of a national pizza franchise who were putting up their various outlets as security. This was a complex transaction with a tight deadline.

3. Business – A client bought a beauty salon business as a going concern from a seller who had had two previous buyers pull out before exchange and was understandably concerned the same would happen again. Sarah drew up an agreement by which the buyer paid a holding deposit in return for the seller agreeing to not deal with any other party provided the transaction completed within 4 weeks. Sarah conducted the due diligence and guided her client, who was a first-time buyer and a novice in business, through the process and the transaction completed within the deadline.