The Ash conveyancing firm that I appointed last week on my house acquisition in Ash have without warning shut down. I chose them because I had to have a lawyer on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel and my family Ash lawyer was not. I gave my credit card details for them to take £195 for searches. What do I do now?
If you have an estate agent involved then inform them immediately so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to the problems encountered. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new solicitors may be able to assist.
Are all Ash Conveyancing Quality Solicitors on the Coventry BS conveyancing list of approved solicitors?
It is true that some banks and building societies now use CQS as the starting point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS membership however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. Nevertheless,the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitors wishing to remain on their panels.
When it comes to mortgage companies such as UBS, do Ash property lawyers have to pay an annual charge to be on the list of approved solicitors?
We are not aware of any bank fees to register on their list of approved firms, although some do levy an administration fee to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.
I've read lots of mortgage guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Ash solicitor - who is on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. is that correct?
Yorkshire BS will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Yorkshire BS will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Ash surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
The deeds to our home are lost. The conveyancers who handled the conveyancing in Ash 10 years ago are no longer around. What do I do?
Assuming the title is registered the details of your ownership will be documented by the Land Registry under a Title Number. It is easy to perform a search at the Land Registry, identify your house and get current copies of the Registered Entries for a small fee. If the property is Leasehold then the Land Registry will usually retain a certified duplicate of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be ordered for a small fee.
I am looking for a ground for flat up to £305k and identified one near me in Ash I like with open areas and railway links in the vicinity, however it only has 61 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Ash for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a short lease?
Should you need a home loan that many years will likely be a potential deal breaker. Discount the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the property for a minimum of twenty four months you could ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer concerning this.
Given that I will soon part with £400,000 on a terraced house in Ash I wish to have a conversation with the solicitor concerning thehome move prior to appointing the firm. Is this something that you can arrange?
We could not agree more - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you speaking to the conveyancer due to be conducting your property ownership legalities in Ash.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is unique individual, not a file number. The practices that we put you in touch with believe that the fees you are calculated and presented to you for residential conveyancing in Ash should be the amount on the final invoice that you are charged.
Due to exchange soon on a leasehold property in Ash. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?
Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Ash should include some of the following:
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Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice? Who has the liability to repair and maintain the main walls and foundations. It is essential that you know which party is duty bound to repair and maintenance of all parts of the block and communal areas You should know if the lease permits you to add or upgrade aspects of the premises- you must be made aware as to whether it applies to all alterations or limited to structural alteration, and whether permission is required Information as to the provision in the lease to to contribute towards maintenance costs - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has The landlord’s rights to access the property. You should be made aware that your landlord has rights of access as well as be informed how much notice must be provided.
I purchased a split level flat in Ash, conveyancing formalities finalised May 2000. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar flats in Ash with an extended lease are worth £190,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2088
With 62 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £17,100 and £19,800 plus professional fees.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.