My aunt passed away six months ago and as sole heir and executor I was left the property in Burford. The house had a small mortgage remaining of approximately £4500. I want to transfer the title deeds into my name whilst I re-mortgage to Nottingham, pay off the mortgage. Is this allowed?
If you plan to refinance then Nottingham will require that you use a conveyancer on the Nottingham conveyancing panel. Here is link to the Land Registry online guidance around what to do when a property owner dies. This will help you to understand the registration process behind changing the details re the registered title. in your case it would appear that you are effectively purchasing the property from the estate. Your Nottingham conveyancing panel solicitor pays the new mortgage money into the estate, the estate pays off the old mortgage, the charge is released and you become the owner and the Nottingham mortgage is registered as a charge at the Land Registry.
A relative advised me that if I am buying in Burford I should ask my conveyancer to carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?
A search of this type is occasionally quoted for as part of the standard Burford conveyancing searches. It is not a small document of about 40 pages, listing and detailing significant information about Burford around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime statistics, Burford Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information regarding Burford.
How does conveyancing in Burford differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in Burford approach us having been asked by the developer to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is built. This is because new home sellers in Burford tend to acquire 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 Burford or who has acted in the same development.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a flat up to £305k and identified one near me in Burford I like with amenity areas and railway links in the vicinity, the downside is that it only has 51 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Burford for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a short lease?
If you require a home loan that many years will be an issue. Discount the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you could request that they start the process of the extension and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor concerning this.
Given that I am about to part with hundreds of thousands of pounds on 3 bedroom house in Burford I would like to talk to a solicitor regarding theconveyancing before instructing the firm. Can this be arranged?
This is something that we encourage - we would be delighted to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you speaking to the conveyancer who will be conducting your conveyancing in Burford.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - every client is unique person, not a case number. The solicitors that we put you in touch with believe that the fees you are provided with for residential conveyancing in Burford should be the amount on the final invoice that you end up paying.
Completion is due on the sale of our £200,000 maisonette in Burford next week. The managing agents has quoted £420 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Burford?
Burford conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes normally requires the purchaser’s solicitor submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be content to assist. They are entitled to levy a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee invoiced by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality you have no choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.
Burford Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to buying
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How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments? The best form of lease structure is where the freehold interest is owned by the leaseholders. In this arrangement the lessees benefit from being in charge if their destiny and although a managing agent is often employed if it is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves. Be sure to find out if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For instance some leases prohibit pets being allowed in in a block in Burford. If you like the flatin Burford yet your dog can’t make the move with you then you have a very hard choice.