Our son is buying a new build apartment in Cookham with a mortgage from Nationwide. His solicitor has said that there is a delay in completing the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. Who needs to receive the form?
The form is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Nationwide conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Nationwide conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
I purchased a freehold house in Cookham yet invoiced for rent, why is this and what is this?
It’s unusual for properties in Cookham and has limited impact for conveyancing in Cookham but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.
Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges date back many centuries, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the generation of fresh rentcharges post 1977.
Old rentcharges can now be redeemed by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence after 2037 will be extinguished.
My bid for a property was accepted at auction in Cookham. Conveyancing is required. What are my next steps?
Given that you have now legally committed yourself to purchase you now have to instruct a conveyancing practitioner soon as you are faced with a fast approaching a drop dead date to complete the purchase. An auction property should have a bespoke auction set of papers. This should include the copy title deeds, local authority and drainage searches. Where you are dealing with leasehold property the auction pack may contain a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and other conveyancing paperwork specific to leasehold premises. You must hand this to your appointed conveyancing solicitor at the earliest opportunity. Do make sure that you have funds organised to complete the transaction on the set completion date.
This question may be naive but I am new to the house moving as a first time purchaser of a ground floor flat in Cookham. Do I pick up the keys to the premises on completion from my solicitor? If so, I will find a local conveyancing solicitor in Cookham?
There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Conveyancing lawyers for you will electronically transfer the completion advance to the seller's lawyers, and shortly after the monies have arrived, you will be invited to pick up the keys from the selling Agents and move into your new home. Usually this occurs early afternoon.
After much negotiation I have agreed a price on an apartment in Cookham. My mortgage broker pressured me to appoint their conveyancing practitioner. I paid an advanced payment of £225. A couple of days later, the conveyancer called me embarrassingly acknowledging that they were not on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Clydesdale panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.
I used Arc property Solicitors several years ago for my conveyancing in Cookham. Now, I need my documents however cannot find the solicitor. What do I do?
Do call 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 Cookham 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.
How does conveyancing in Cookham differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build premises in Cookham approach us having been asked by the housebuilder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is constructed. This is because developers in Cookham usually 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 property lawyers 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 used to new build conveyancing in Cookham or who has acted in the same development.
Your search tool is useful but there are many lawyers listed near Cookham being on the lender conveyancing panel. It would be a lot more helpful if you could recommend a specific firm on the mortgage company approved panel?
We are not in the business of recommending one firm above another as the right Cookham conveyancing solicitor for you depends on where your priorities lie. For example you may require a local firm with Cookham knowledge or you might be looking for the low cost conveyancing. Before you appoint your lawyer we advise you to speak to two or three of the the firms listed to gain comfort as to which one is right for you..