Am I correct in assuming that the fact that my solicitor in Crawley is not on my mortgage company's solicitor panel that there is a problem with the quality of the firm’s conveyancing?
That would most likely be an incorrect assumption to make. There are all sorts of perfectly plausible explanations. A recent report by the solicitors regulator revealed that over three quarters of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The most common reasons for removal are: (1) low volume of transactions (2) the lawyer is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. Where you are concerned you should simply call the Crawley conveyancing practice and enquire why they are no longer on the approved list for your mortgage company.
My husband and I intend to remortgage our penthouse in Crawley with UBS. We have a son 19 who lives with us. Our solicitor requested us to identify any adults other than ourselves who reside at the property. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the property is forfeited by the lender. I have a couple of questions (1) Is this document specific to the UBS conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we remortgaged 4 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this compromise his rights to inherit the property?
First, rest assured that your UBS conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to UBS. This is solely used to protect UBS if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of UBS had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
As someone not used to conveyancing in Crawley what’s the number one tip you can impart for the home moving process in Crawley
Not many law firms or advisers will tell you this but conveyancing in Crawley and elsewhere in England and Wales is often a confrontational experience. Put another way, when it comes to conveyancing there exists lots of room for conflict between you and others involved in the ownership transfer. For instance, the seller, property agent and even potentially a mortgage company. Appointing a lawyer for your conveyancing in Crawley should not be taken lightly as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the ONLY party in the transaction whose interest is to look after your best interests and to keep you safe.
There is a worrying ongoing adversarial element to conveyancing- someone has to be at fault for the process taking so long. We recommend that you your first instinct should be to trust your conveyancer ahead of the other parties when it comes to the legal assignment of property.
There are a variety of conveyancing solicitors in Crawley but how do I know who's good?
Do not opt for the lowest Crawley conveyancing quote. You really do get what you pay for when it comes to property lawyers. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you know exactly what you’ll have to pay in ahead of time.
This question may be naive but I am unexperienced as FTB of a ground floor flat in Crawley. Do I receive the keys to the property on the completion date from my conveyancer? If this is the case, I will find a local conveyancing solicitor in Crawley?
There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Your solicitors will arrange to send the completion advance to the owner’s lawyers, and shortly after the monies have arrived, you should be invited to pick up the keys from the selling Agents and move into your new home. Usually this occurs between 1 and 3pm.
I am being advised by my conveyancer that lack of planning permission insurance is necessary on my purchase. What is the typical level of cover needed for conveyancing in Crawley?
The right level of lack of planning permission indemnity insurance depends on who your lender is. It would differ for example between HSBC Bank and Bank of Scotland. Conveyancing lawyers as opposed to borrowers take out such insurances.
Just had an offer accepted on a new build apartment in Crawley. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build conveyancing.
Set out below are examples of a selection of leasehold new build enquiries that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Crawley
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Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision. Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants. Please supply a car parking plan.
I've recently bought a leasehold house in Crawley. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?
Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.
If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).
I invested in buying a 1st floor flat in Crawley, conveyancing formalities finalised 5 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Crawley with a long lease are worth £190,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2086
With just 61 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £19,000 and £22,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.