I have just been advised by my mortgage broker that my Cheltenham solicitor is not on the mortgage company Conveyancing panel. How can I be certain that this is indeed the case?
You need to call your Cheltenham conveyancer. It is reasonable to expect your lawyer to advise you what has happened. Where they are not on the panel they may recommend you to a Cheltenham conveyancing firm that is on the approved list of lawyers for your bank.
Can the conveyancing solicitors that you recommend conduct conveyancing in Cheltenham by way of an attended exchange?
We do have a number of conveyancing specialists carrying out personalised exchanges. Do e-mail us to obtain a fee calculation and details as to availability.
It is a dozen years since I bought my property in Cheltenham. Conveyancing solicitors have just been appointed on the sale but I am unable to locate my title documents. Is this a problem?
Don’t worry too much. Firstly the deeds may be with your mortgage company or they may stored with the solicitor who acted in the purchase. Secondly in all probability the property will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you are the registered owner by your conveyancing solicitors acquiring up to date copy of the land registers. Nearly all conveyancing in Cheltenham relates to registered property but in the rare situation where your property is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is not insurmountable.
I'm purchasing a new build house in Cheltenham with the aid of help to buy. The sellers refused to reduce the amount so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The property agent advised me not to tell my solicitor about the deal as it would adversely affect my loan with the bank. 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 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.
I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £305k and identified one near me in Cheltenham I like with amenity areas and transport links in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 52 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Cheltenham in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a short lease?
Should you need a home loan that many years will be an issue. Discount the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you could ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this.
I am looking at a two flats in Cheltenham both have approximately forty five years left on the leases. Do I need to be concerned?
There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Cheltenham is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the value of the property. The majority of buyers and mortgage companies, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Cheltenham conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease. They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.
Cheltenham Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should consider before buying
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Who manages the block? Does the lease have in excess of 90 years unexpired?