I am one month into the sale of my house in Bromley and the EA has just e-mailed to warn that the buyers are changing their property lawyer. The excuse is that the mortgage company will only engage with solicitors on their approved list. Why would a leading mortgage company only work with specific law firms rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Bromley ?
Mortgage companies have always had an approved set of law firms that can represent them, but in the last few years big names such as HSBC, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for many years.
Lending institutions justify this action to a rise in fraud as the reason for the pruning – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Some are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The purchasers are not going to have any impact on this.
I am buying a house without a mortgage in Bromley. I have been living for the last Seventeen years in Bromley. Conveyancing searches are exorbitant. As I know the area and road very well should I not bother getting the solicitor to do all the conveyancing searches?
If you not getting a home loan, then almost all of the Bromley conveyancing searches are at your discretion. Your lawyer will try and sway you, perhaps strongly, that you should have searches done, but she is duty bound to take that path of encouragement . Do take into account; if you are going to sell the house at a future date, it may be of importance to your future purchaser what the searches contain. There are plenty of instances where premises with day to day issues can still reveal unfavourable search results. A good conveyancing solicitor in Bromley will be able to give you some constructive guidance in this regard.
Should my solicitor be raising enquiries regarding flooding during the conveyancing in Bromley.
The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for conveyancers dealing with homes in Bromley. There are those who buy a property in Bromley, fully aware that at some time, it may be flooded. However, aside from the physical damage, where a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, suitable building insurance, or dispose of the property. There are steps that can be taken during the course of a house purchase to forewarn the purchaser.
Conveyancers are not qualified to offer advice on flood risk, however there are a numerous checks that may be undertaken by the buyer or on a buyer’s behalf which should give them a better understanding of the risks in Bromley. The conventional set of information sent to a purchaser’s solicitor (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) incorporates a usual question of the owner to determine whether the premises has suffered from flooding. In the event that flooding has previously occurred and is not notified by the vendor, then a purchaser could issue a claim for damages stemming from an inaccurate answer. A buyer’s conveyancers may also commission an environmental search. This will reveal if there is any known flood risk. If so, further inquiries will need to be conducted.
I have been on the look out for a flat up to £305k and identified one close by in Bromley I like with open areas and station in the vicinity, the downside is that it only has 49 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Bromley suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a lease with such few years left?
Should you need a home loan the shortness of the lease will be a potential deal breaker. Discount the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you may ask them to start the process of the extension and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer about this.
As co-executor for the estate of my aunt I am disposing of a property in Neath but I am based in Bromley. My solicitor (based 235 kilometers awayrequires that I sign a stat dec before completion. Can you recommend a conveyancing practitioner in Bromley who can witness and place their company stamp on the document?
strictly speaking you should not be required to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Normally any notary public or solicitor will do regardless of whether they are based in Bromley
20 days into buying a house in Bromley. Conveyancing lawyer has told us the title is "Leasehold". Does this impact the salability of the house?
Bromley conveyancing does not usually involve leasehold houses. The main factor here is the unexpired lease term and the ground rent. If there are over a hundred years remaining with a peppercorn rent, it's almost the same as freehold, so it’s unlikely to affect the marketability significantly.
At the other extreme, if it's, say, 50 years it is bound to have a significant effect on the value, and probably wouldn't be mortgageable. The length of lease and ground rent will be stated in the lease to be supplied to your conveyancing practitioner.