We are looking to buy a property and require a conveyancing solicitor in Chatham who is on the Co-operative approved panel. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a firm?
Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Co-operative . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in Chatham.
Do I choose a Licenced Conveyancer or Solicitor for conveyancing in Chatham?
There are many recorded licenced Conveyancers in Chatham and Solicitor practices in Chatham who provide Conveyancing services We would stress that both are regulated professionals specialising in the legal work in the home buying process. They may both also conduct other property legal work such as remortgage conveyancing, enfranchisement and transfer of equity conveyancing.
I am assisting my step-mother sell her property in Chatham. Does the solicitor commission the energy performance certificate or it is for the owner to see to?
Following the abolition of Home Information Packs, energy assessments was kept a mandatory part of moving house. An energy performance certificate should be commissioned before the property is marketed. It is not as aspect of the sale process that lawyers ordinarily arrange. Where you are using a Chatham conveyancing practitioner they might help arrange EPC’s given their contacts with long established local providers
I have paid off my mortgage with Bank of Ireland. I assume I don't need a Chatham solicitor on the Bank of Ireland panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.
If you have finished paying off your Bank of Ireland mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Bank of Ireland mortgage from the register. Bank of Ireland, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Bank of Ireland has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Bank of Ireland has instructed the Land Registry to do so
My wife and I have a terraced Victorian house in Chatham. Conveyancing lawyer represented me and Barclays Direct. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and there are a couple of entries: one for freehold, the second leasehold with the matching property. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?
You need to read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Chatham and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they remortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with lenders. You can also check the position with your conveyancing solicitor who conducted the conveyancing.
How does conveyancing in Chatham differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build premises in Chatham contact us having been asked by the builder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is completed. This is because builders in Chatham usually buy the real estate, 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 conveyancing solicitors 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 Chatham or who has acted in the same development.
I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold issue on a property I have offered on two weeks back in what should have been a straight forward, no chain conveyancing. Chatham is where the house is located. Can you offer any assistance?
Flying freeholds in Chatham are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Chatham you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds very carefully. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Chatham 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.
I only have 72 years unexpired on my flat in Chatham. I need to get lease extension but my landlord is missing. What options are available to me?
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 an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to find the freeholder. On the whole a specialist would be helpful to try and locate and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Chatham.
Leasehold Conveyancing in Chatham - Sample of Queries Prior to buying
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What is the the remaining lease term? How is the lease structured? You will want to discover as much as possible regarding the company managing the building as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you are often in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to every day issues such as the upkeep of the common parts. Enquire of other people what they think of them. On a final note, be sure you understand the dates that the maintenance fees are due to the managing agents and precisely what it includes.