This question may be naive but I am unexperienced as a first time purchaser of a garden flat in Bristol. Do I pick up the keys to the house on the completion date from my conveyancer? If this is the case, I will use a High Street conveyancing solicitor in Bristol?
There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Your solicitors will transfer the completion advance to the vendor’s solicitors, and shortly after the monies have arrived, you will be called to collect the keys from the selling Agents and move into your new home. This tends to happen between 1 and 3pm.
I am being told by my lawyer that flying freehold insurance is needed on my purchase. What is the typical level of cover needed for conveyancing in Bristol?
The right level of flying freehold indemnity insurance should be dictated by who your lender. It would differ for example between HSBC Bank and Chelsea Building Society. Conveyancing practitioners as opposed to borrowers take out such policies.
After months of negotiation I have agreed a price on a house in Bristol. My mortgage broker recommended their conveyancers. I paid an advanced payment of £200. A couple of days later, the solicitor called me sheepishly admitting that they were not on the Aldermore 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 Aldermore 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 require fast conveyancing in Bristol as I am faced with a deadline to sign on the dotted line inside 4 weeks. A mortgage is not required. Can I avoid the conveyancing searches to save fees and time?
If.Given you are are a cash purchaser you have the choice not to have searches carried out although no lawyer would suggest that you don't. Drawing on our experience of conveyancing in Bristol the following are instances of what can arise and therefore affect the marketability of the property: Enforcement Notices, Outstanding Fees, Outstanding Grants, Railway Schemes,...
How does conveyancing in Bristol differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build property in Bristol contact us having been asked by the housebuilder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is finished. This is because house builders in Bristol tend to purchase 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 conveyancers 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 accustomed to new build conveyancing in Bristol or who has acted in the same development.
Due to the guidance of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Bristol before retaining solicitors. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold overhang to the house. Our surveyor has said that some mortgage companies will refuse to give a loan on a flying freehold house.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Lloyds has different instructions for example to Nationwide. Should you wish to telephone us we can investigate further with the relevant mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Bristol. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Bristol especially if they regularly deal with such properties in Bristol.
How can the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 impact my commercial premises in Bristol and how can you help?
The 1954 Act gives security of tenure to business leaseholders, giving them the legal entitlement to apply to court for a continuation of occupancy at the end of an expired lease. There are certain specified grounds where a landlord can refuse a lease renewal and the rules are complicated. Fees are different for commercial conveyancing. Bristol is one of the hundreds of locations in which our lawyers have offices
We are about to exchange on the purchase a house in Bristol but as a result of wreckage from the recent storms I have agreed reparation from the current proprietors of £2k in the form of a adjustment in the price. I had intended this to be addressed as part of the conveyancing process however my mortgage company will not agree to this. Why were they approached?
The property lawyer being on the bank approved list is required to inform the mortgage company of any changes to the sale amount. If you were to refuse your conveyancer to notify the reduction to your bank then they would have no choice but to discontinue representing you and the bank.