I am assisting my niece sell her property in Cardiff. Does the solicitor commission the energy assessment or should I organise this?
After the demise of HIPs, energy performance certificates became a required part of moving house. An energy performance certificate must be commissioned in advance of the property being advertised. This is not something that solicitors normally organise. If you are instructing a Cardiff conveyancing solicitor they might help arrange energy performance certificates due to their relationships with reputable Cardiff assessors
We have agreed to purchase a house in Cardiff. A rare aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Coventry BS have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?
Given that you are obtaining a mortgage with Coventry BS your lawyer must comply with the conveyancing requirements outlined in Section 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Coventry BS. The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook stipulates minimum conditions for solar panel roof-space leases, and conveyancers are required to report to Coventry BS where a lease does not satisfy these provisions. The conditions relate to the installation of panels on properties countrywide and is not limited to Cardiff.
I am selling my apartment. I had a double glazing fitted in May 2010, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's mortgage company, Co-operative are being problematic. The Cardiff solicitor who is on the Co-operative conveyancing panel is happy to accept ‘lack of building regulation’ insurance but Co-operative are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do Co-operative have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that Co-operative have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Co-operative may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
Various internet forums that I have come across warn that are the number one cause of stalling in Cardiff house deals. Is this right?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) has noted the findings of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not figure within the top 10 causes of delays during the legal transfer of property. Local searches are unlikely to be the root cause of slowing down conveyancing in Cardiff.
I used Action Conveyancing a few years past for my conveyancing in Cardiff. I now require my papers however the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?
You should contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Cardiff of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously instructed, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
I am purchasing my first flat in Cardiff with a mortgage from Yorkshire Building Society. The sellers refused to budge the amount so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The house builders rep told me not disclose to my conveyancer about this extras as it will impact my mortgage with the lender. Is this normal?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the UK Finance website. UK Finance 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.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold element on a property I have offered on two weeks back in what was supposed to be a simple, chain free conveyancing. Cardiff is the location of the property. Can you shed any light on this issue?
Flying freeholds in Cardiff are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Cardiff you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds thoroughly. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Cardiff may ascertain that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.
In my capacity as executor for the will of my uncle I am disposing of a residence in Newport but I am based in Cardiff. My solicitor (based 250 miles from merequires that I execute a statutory declaration prior to completion. Can you recommend a conveyancing lawyer in Cardiff to witness this legal document for me?
strictly speaking you are unlikely to be required to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily any notary public or qualified solicitor will be fine regardless of whether they are located in Cardiff