I am looking for value for money property lawyer. Should I go for for a nationwide conveyancer as opposed to a local Covent Garden conveyancing lawyer?
Established third party relationships is an important consideration when choosing conveyancing lawyers. Covent Garden law firms benefit from connections with lenders and agents, local authorities, surveyors and other law firms meaning the whole process is going to be much more straightforward for you. Possessing vast insight into the local area is also a plus .
I just bought a property at auction in Covent Garden. Conveyancing is necessary. What are my next steps?
Given that you have now exchanged you now have to find a conveyancing practitioner as a matter of priority as you are facing a pending deadline in which to complete the transaction. Every auction property will have a bespoke legal pack. This should include most,if not all of the paperwork that your lawyer will need. If you have purchased leasehold property the conveyancing pack should provide a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and associated conveyancing documentation pertinent to a leasehold property. You should hand this to the lawyer working for you ASAP. You also need to ensure that that you have the requisite funding organised to complete on the date specified in the contract.
The mortgage over my property is with Coventry BS for my property in Covent Garden. Conveyancing was finalised some time ago. In the event that I decide to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Coventry BS?
You must advise Coventry BS prior to renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of Coventry BS’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Coventry BS directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Coventry BS conveyancing panel lawyer.
About to purchase maisonette in Covent Garden. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Lender if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Covent Garden conveyancer is on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel.
Various online forums that I have visited warn that are a common reason for hinderance in Covent Garden conveyancing transactions. Is there any truth in this?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) has noted the determinations of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature amongst the top 10 causes of hindrances during the legal transfer of property. Searches are unlikely to be the root cause of slowing down conveyancing in Covent Garden.
Me and my brother own a 4 bedroom Edwardian property in Covent Garden. Conveyancing lawyer acted for me and Platform Home Loans Ltd. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and I saw two entries: the first freehold, another for leasehold with the exact same property. I thought I was buying a freehold how can I check?
You should assess 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 Covent Garden and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with buyers. You can also enquire as to the situation with the conveyancing solicitor who completed the work.
I am purchasing my first flat in Covent Garden with the aid of help to buy. The sellers refused to reduce the amount so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The sale representative told me not to tell my lawyer about the side-deal as it will impact my mortgage with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.
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 am looking for a ground for flat up to £235,500 and identified one close by in Covent Garden I like with open areas and railway links nearby, the downside is that it only has 52 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Covent Garden in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a lease with such few years left?
Should you need a mortgage that many years will be an issue. Reduce 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 at least 2 years you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor regarding this matter.