Our son-in-law is purchasing a house that has just been built in Billingshurst with a mortgage from Skipton. His solicitor has advised him of a delay in receiving the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. This document is news to me - what is it and who needs sight of it?
The form is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Skipton conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the valuer when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Skipton conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
My property lawyer in Billingshurst has never been on on the Halifax Solicitor Panel. Can I still use my prefered solicitor even though they are excluded from the Halifax list of approved lawyers?
Your options are as follows:
- Complete the purchase with your existing Billingshurst lawyers but Halifax will need to use a conveyancer on their panel. This will inevitably rack up the total conveyancing charges and cause delays.
- Get an alternative lawyer to act in the purchase, obviously checking they are Persuade your solicitor to use their best endeavours to join the Halifax conveyancing panel
My wife and I are selling our house in Billingshurst and according to the buyers it appears that there is a risk of it being constructed on contaminated land. A high street Billingshurst lawyer would know this is not the case. For the life of me I don't know why the buyers are using an online conveyancing practice as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Billingshurst. Having lived in Billingshurst for many years we know of no issue. Should we contact our local Authority to seek confirmation that there is no issue.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing lawyer already. Are they able to advise? You should enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same ailment)
I have been recommended by two or three local estate agents in Billingshurst to locate a conveyancer on your site. What’s the financial incentive for Estate Agents to promote your services rather than a competitor’s?
We refuse to offer any commission for pointing buyers and sellers our way. We thought it would be too underhand a fee as a client could think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not receiving any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.
Back In 2005, I bought a leasehold house in Billingshurst. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing practitioner in Billingshurst who previously acted has long since retired. Do I pay?
The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Billingshurst conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
Billingshurst Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing
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For many Billingshurst leaseholds the cost for major works are not included within maintenance charges, albeit that some managing agents in Billingshurst obliged leasehold owners to contribute towards a reserve fund and this is used to offset against major repairs or maintenance. Does this lease have in excess of 80 years left? How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments?
Please set out some of compelling advantages to using a local lawyer in Billingshurst
Plenty of house movers in Billingshurst prefer a local lawyer so that they can visit if they have problems, and to execute paperwork without using the Royal Mail.
One could suggest that there is a slight advantage when opting for a lawyer local to the house you are buying, due to the familiarity of the locality and potential local concerns - yet this is moot. Many conveyancers carry out their communications by way of email and may be any place in the world.