My husband and I are looking to purchase a flat in Ladywood and are in fact using a Ladywood conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Nationwide Building Society have this evening contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Ladywood conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?
Where you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You don't have to instruct a firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Ladywood solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
What does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in Ladywood? What am I being asked for?
In order to comply with Money Laundering Regulations any Ladywood conveyancing firm will require proof of identity in all conveyancing matters. This is usually dealt with by provision of a passport and an original bank statement or utility bill showing where you reside.
In accordance with Money Laundering Regulations, conveyancing solicitors are required to check not just the ID of conveyancing clients but also the source of the money that they receive in respect of any matter. Refusal to disclose this will result in your lawyer ending their retainer with you, as clearly this will cause a conflict between the set Regulations and a refusal to disclose.
Your property lawyers will have an obligation to notify the appropriate authorities should they believe that any amounts received by them may contravene the Money Laundering Regulations.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up as part of conveyancing in Ladywood?
Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Ladywood. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £245,000 and found one close by in Ladywood I like with amenity areas and transport links in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 49 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Ladywood suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a short lease?
Should you need a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term may be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the property for at least twenty four months you may request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer concerning this matter.
Is it possible to transfer to a new firm as I have to choose one who is on the Chelsea Building Society conveyancing panel. I had appointed a high street conveyancing solicitor in Ladywood five minutes from me but the firm is not approved by Chelsea Building Society
We will our best to assist in finding you a conveyancing solicitor in Ladywood on the Chelsea Building Society panel. Please note that the solicitors that we on the directory do not pay us a referral fee if you instruct them and are authorised and regulated by the SRA who oversee all conveyancing solicitors in Ladywood. Using the find a conveyancing solicitor tool on this site, you can compare and instruct different solicitors and conveyancers both nationally and in Ladywood.
I’m about to sell my garden apartment in Ladywood. Conveyancing is yet to be initiated, however I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?
The sensible thing to do is pay the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be allotted on completion, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.
Ladywood Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Questions you should ask before buying
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What is the length of the lease? Please tell me if there are any major works in the near future that will likely add a premium to the maintenance costs? The majority of Ladywood leasehold properties will be liable to pay a service charge for maintenance of the building set by the management company. If you acquire the apartment you will have to pay this amount, normally quarterly accross the year. This can differ from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large communal grounds. There will also be a rentcharge to be met yearly, this is usually not a significant figure, say around £25-£75 but you should to check as on occasion it could be many hundreds of pounds.