The property market in Belgravia is heating up. What can be done to expedite the legal process?
Where you are under a tight deadline to complete it is advisable to make sure that your conveyancer is familiar with the location as they will benefit local contacts and insight. It is possible that they would have transacted otherhomes in the same road. Therefore consider using a Belgravia conveyancing lawyer. Second, make sure that the lawyer is on the on the approved list for your mortgage company. It is said that just under twenty per cent of Belgravia conveyancing transactions are frustrated or jeopardised after discovering a purchaser’s lawyer was not on their mortgage lender’s panel. This can often result in the legal process being delayed by an average of three weeks. It is understood that this issue affects in the region of one hundred thousand home moves annually. Most Belgravia conveyancing firms can not represent certain mortgage companies so do check as early as possible.
My bid for a property was accepted at auction in Belgravia. Conveyancing is needed. What is next?
Now that you have for in every practical sense signed on the dotted line you must retain a conveyancing practitioner quickly as you are faced with a pending a drop dead date to complete the deal. All auction property will ordinarily have a corresponding auction pack. This should include evidence of title and search results. If you have purchased leasehold property the auction papers should contain a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and other conveyancing paperwork pertinent to leasehold premises. You should give this to your appointed conveyancing solicitor at the earliest opportunity. You also need to ensure that your finances are in order to complete on the date specified in the contract.
I have been advised by my conveyancer that lack of planning permission insurance is needed on my purchase. What is the typical level of cover needed for conveyancing in Belgravia?
The appropriate level of lack of planning permission indemnity insurance should be dictated by who who your lender is. It would differ for example between Accord Mortgages Ltd and Bank of Scotland. Conveyancing lawyers as opposed to borrowers take out such policies.
The mortgage over my property is with Santander for my property in Belgravia. Conveyancing has been completed a year ago. In the event that I decide to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Santander?
Santander must be informed of your intention before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Santander’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Santander will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Santander directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Santander conveyancing panel solicitor.
Will commercial conveyancing searches disclose planned roadworks that could affect a commercial site in Belgravia?
Many commercial conveyancing solicitors in Belgravia will execute a SiteSolutions Highways report as it dramatically cuts the time that conveyancers expend in investigating accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Belgravia. The report sets out definitive information on the adoption status of roads, footpaths and verges, as well as the implication of traffic schemes and the rights of way surrounding a commercial development sites in Belgravia.
For every commercial conveyancing transaction in Belgravia it is crucial to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. Failure to identify developments where adoption procedures have not been addressed adequately can cause delays to Belgravia commercial conveyancing deals as well as pose a risk to future plans for the site. These searches are not ordered for residential conveyancing in Belgravia.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified as part of conveyancing in Belgravia?
Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Belgravia. 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…’
How does conveyancing in Belgravia differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build residence in Belgravia contact us having been asked by the housebuilder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is constructed. This is because new home sellers in Belgravia typically buy the land, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct property lawyers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Belgravia or who has acted in the same development.
I have been recommended by a few property agents in Belgravia to choose a property lawyer using your seach tool. What’s the financial upside for Estate Agents to offer your lawyers ahead of another?
We don’t offer any referral fee for pointing buyers and sellers our way. We found it would be just too difficult a fee as a client could think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not receiving any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.