Jonathan Living

My first time on the forum. I hope I'm in the right place. I purchased a single garage via auction. I paid exactly the sum the auctioneer called as my winning bid to the auction house, together with their fees. Their fees attracted VAT but I paid that as part of the payment I made. There are special conditions with the sale, i.e. that I pay the auctioneers fee (attracts VAT) and a contribution towards the seller's fees (attracts VAT). My solicitor is now suggesting I need to pay VAT on the PURCHASE PRICE (my final winning final bid on the fall of the auction hammer). There's no mention of this anywhere in the auction conditions on any of the documents or other information that has been made available to me. From what I can gather, residential property does not attract VAT in the UK. Nor does commercial property unless the seller has opted for tax. The garages are in a block and where originally associated with flats above a shopping parade, but have been split out on separate titles. The seller is a London-based property company. I'm not sure if they are the original owners, or they have been involved in purchase and now resale of the garages in previous years. They're in a poor state of repair and need plenty of work to make them useable. Is it possible the seller can claim it is a commercial property rather than residential, and has opted for tax? What is the likelihood? If so, do I have to pay VAT if I am simply a "private individual" (a common or garden citizen in the UK) with no discernible income, but would normally expect to pay tax on income, savings, etc. Any help provided would be very gratefully received.