My husband and I are planning to acquire a home in Bexleyheath and have instructed a Bexleyheath conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our solicitor has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Virgin Money have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Bexleyheath conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?
Where you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the mortgage company. 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 solicitor should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Bexleyheath solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
I have an AIP. The lender mentioned the mortgage came with free conveyancing. Is the implication that I have to instruct their panel lawyer as I would much rather appoint a specialised conveyancing solicitor in Bexleyheath?
You should check but the chances are that give you one of their panel lawyers where you accept the "fee-free" deal. Call the bank and see if they make available a cash alternative. In the past a few mortgage companies offered a £250 cashback as an alternative in which case that money can go towards the cost for your conveyancing solicitor in Bexleyheath.
I note that there are debates on Chancel Insurance on online forums. Am I compelled to take this when purchasing a house in Bexleyheath? or I am told that there is an ancient law that means some homeowners living in a parish church boundary will be compelled to contribute towards maintenance towards the chancel in proximity to the church. Is this a legitimate concern for conveyancing in Bexleyheath?
Unless a prior acquisition of the house completed post 12 October 2013 you may take it that conveyancing practitioners conducting conveyancing in Bexleyheath to remain recommending a chancel search and or chancel repair liability insurance.
About to purchase a new build flat in Bexleyheath. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build conveyancing.
Here are examples of a few leasehold new build questions that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Bexleyheath
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Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision. Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier? If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? Please supply a car parking plan.
Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Bexleyheath with the aim of saving time on the sale process?
- A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Bexleyheath can be avoided where you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers’ representatives. A minority of Bexleyheath leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers. Many freeholders or Management Companies in Bexleyheath charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Bexleyheath. You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should double-check via your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is below 75 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale. If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over rather than unresolved.
I have had difficulty in seeking a lease extension in Bexleyheath. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?
You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a Bexleyheath conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a Bexleyheath flat is Various @ Colombus Square in January 2012. the Tribunal calculated the premiums to be paid for new leases for each of the flats in Mariners Walk to be £3822 and the premium to be paid for the new lease of 2 Knights Court to be £4439. This case related to 13 flats. The unexpired lease term was 76 years.
Is planning permission necessary to convert a single dwelling into a couple of flats in Bexleyheath? This has taken place to a house next door to a relative in Bexleyheath and was ignorant of it happening until after the works were complete.
Planning consent is required for splitting a single dwelling in Bexleyheath into flats but possibly not for reverting back to single dwelling-house so, in answer to your question, yes.