I have given 8 weeks notice to my existing landlord and have to be out of my let out property in Belper by the end of next month. Conveyancing for my house purchase is progressing. Can I complete in 4 weeks as don't want to have to move into temporary accommodation?
The normal practice is not to provide notice on a rental until exchange of contracts has taken place. If you have not previously done so, speak to your solicitor and request that they cajole the owners solicitors, try to get a realistic time scale from them that everyone will aim to achieve
When can the exchange of contracts happen for residential conveyancing in Belper and am I required to be at the solicitors branch?
Where you are round the corner to our conveyancing solicitors in Belper you are invited in to sign documents. However, the lender approved solicitors we recommend supply a national conveyancing service and provide as equally detailed and professional a job for you when dealing with you digitally. The signing of the contract is not the important part. A signed contract is just a prerequisite for the solicitor to officially exchange at the appropriate time, which will usually be very shortly after signing. The procedure is nowadays normally dealt with by telephone and can be very rapid, although where an extended "chain" is in the mix, since the process requires the relevant party's solicitor (not necessarily a conveyancing solicitor in Belper)to be in the office available at the end of the phone to exchange contracts.
I have a mortgage with HSBC for my property in Belper. Conveyancing has been completed a year ago. Should I wish to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform HSBC?
HSBC must be informed of your intention before renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of HSBC’s mortgage conditions. It may be that HSBC 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 HSBC directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a HSBC conveyancing panel solicitor.
I recently had an offer accepted on an apartment in Belper. My financial adviser recommended their conveyancers. I paid an advanced payment of £150. Not long after, the property lawyer contacted me embarrassingly acknowledging that they were not on the Barclays conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Barclays panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.
I am due to exchange contracts on my apartment. I had a double glazing fitted in April 2008, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My purchaser’s mortgage company, Kent Reliance are being problematic. The Belper solicitor who is on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel is happy to accept ‘lack of building regulation’ insurance but Kent Reliance are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do Kent Reliance have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that Kent Reliance have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Kent Reliance may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
I acquired my home on 1 September and my personal details is not yet on the land registry website. Need I be worried? My conveyancing solicitor in Belper said it should be concluded in a couple of weeks. Are properties in Belper particularly slow to register?
There is nothing unique when it comes to conveyancing in Belper registration formalities. Rather than based on location, timescales can vary according to who lodges the application, whether there are errors and whether the Land registry must send notices to any third parties. At present approximately three quarters of such applications are fully addressed within 12 days but occasionally there can be protracted delays. Historically registration occurs once the purchaser has moved in to the property so post completion formalities is not always top priority yet if there is a degree of urgency associated with the registration then you or your conveyancer could communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for the application to be prioritised.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I have offered on two weeks back in what should have been a simple, chain free conveyancing. Belper is the location of the property. Can you shed any light on this issue?
Flying freeholds in Belper are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Belper you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds very carefully. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Belper may ascertain that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.
I need to swap lawyers as my Belper lawyer is not on the lender's approved list of conveyancing solicitors. Is it advisable to appoint a new law firm?
In the event that you have not formally instructed a solicitor to commence the conveyancing and have just received an estimate as to costs, you're perfectly free to choose a different solicitor to carry out your work for you. The best way is to get recommendations from friends or family who have actually used the solicitor or conveyancer in Belper that you're considering.