The owners of the property we are hoping to buy are using a conveyancing firm in Audenshaw who has recommended a preliminary contract with a deposit 10k. Are such agreements sensible?
This kind of preliminary agreement is unusual in Audenshaw, conveyancers are not keen on them as they detract from focusing on the primary objective, namely conveyancing and if you end up losing your deposit then the lawyer at best left with an upset client and at worst a litigious one. In addition, there is no guarantee that just because the vendor has executed an exclusivity agreement they will complete the sale with you. They may be motivated to break the contract if they receive a large enough financial inducement to do so because a wronged claimant with the benefit of a lockout agreement will still be legally obliged to show losses as a consequence of the breach and this may not compare to the financial upside that the owner may secure by breaking the agreement, no matter how morally condemnable it undoubtedly is.
I am considering remortgaging my flat in Audenshaw, does my lawyer need to be on the Virgin Money Solicitor panel?
There is nothing to stop you using your solicitor, but Virgin Money will insist on their interests being represented by a firm on their conveyancing panel. There is much more potential for delays and confusion with two solicitors involved, and it will undoubtedly be more expensive too.
I'm the single recipient of my late father’s estate with all property in now in my sole name, including the my former home in Audenshaw. Conveyancing formalities meant that the Land Registry date was in January. I want to move. I do know about the CML 6 month 'rule', which means that my property ownership could be treated the same way as if I'd bought the house in January. Will no one buy the property for half a year?
The CML handbook mandates solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you could be caught by that. How practical a view mortgage companies take of it, depend on the bank as this provision primarily exists to identify the purchase and immediately sell or the flipping of properties.
The formalities of my remortgage has taken place for my property in Audenshaw. Conveyancing was satisfactory but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. How do I make a complaint?
All banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Department at head office. In most cases complaints to a lender are resolved very quickly. If you feel the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service with full details of your complaint.
Skipton have agreed my mortgage in principle, my bid on a house in Audenshaw has been agreed to, what are the next steps?
Your estate agent will wish to be informed of your lawyer's details (make sure the property lawyers are on the bank’s approved list). Contact Skipton or the financial adviser and finalise any appropriate forms. Skipton will instruct a valuer who will get in touch with the selling agent or vendor to schedule a slot for the valuation to happen. Once conducted (assuming no problems) it takes approximately ten days for the mortgage offer to be issued. Skipton will issue the offer to you and your property lawyers. The legal work will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing in Audenshaw.
I am buying my first flat in Audenshaw with the aid of help to buy. The sellers would not budge the price so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The estate agent advised me not disclose to my lawyer about the side-deal as it could jeopardize my mortgage with the bank. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
I opted to have a survey carried out on a house in Audenshaw ahead of appointing conveyancers. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold element to the property. My surveyor has said that some banks tend not grant a mortgage on a flying freehold home.
It varies from the lender to lender. HSBC has different instructions from Birmingham Midshires. If you call us we can check via the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Audenshaw. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Audenshaw to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.
Am I better off to appoint a Audenshaw conveyancing lawyer based in the area that I am buying? We have a good friend who can handle the legal formalities but they are based a couple of hundredkilometers away.
The primary upside of using a local Audenshaw conveyancing firm is that you can pop in to execute documents, present your identification documents and apply pressure on them where appropriate. Having local Audenshaw know how is a bonus. That being said nothing is more important than finding someone that will do a good and efficient job. If you know people who instructed your friend and the majority were happy that should outweigh using an unfamiliar Audenshaw conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being based in the area.