Do the Building Society Association intend to launch a online directory to to identify law firms on the Darlington Building Society conveyancing panel for instance in Cambridge?
We are not aware of any intention on the part of the BSA to promote such a search facility.
Do I need to take out insurance to address the risk of chancel repairs when purchasing a house in Cambridge?
Unless a prior purchase of the house took place after 12 October 2013 you could assume that conveyancing practitioners conducting conveyancing in Cambridge to continue to propose a a chancel search and or insurance against a claim.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified during conveyancing in Cambridge?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Cambridge. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
I am buying my first flat in Cambridge benefiting from help to buy. The developers refused to budge the amount so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The sale representative told me not to tell my conveyancer about the side-deal as it may affect my mortgage with the lender. Is this normal?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and identified one close by in Cambridge I like with a park and railway links in the vicinity, however it only has 61 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Cambridge in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a lease with such few years left?
If you need a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be an issue. Discount the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years 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 and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.
Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only 68 years remaining on my flat in Cambridge. I now want to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What should I do?
On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to locate the landlord. On the whole a specialist should be useful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Cambridge.
I acquired a 1st floor flat in Cambridge, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Equivalent flats in Cambridge with over 90 years remaining are worth £216,000. The ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2095
You have 70 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 plus legals.
The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.