Should lawyers request money up-front for my conveyancing in Crystal Palace?
If you are buying a property in Crystal Palace your lawyer will ask you put them with funds to cover the search fees. Ordinarily this is called for to cover the fees of the conveyancing searches. If any down payment is as part of the purchase price then this should be required immediately in advance of contracts are exchanged. The closing balance that is due should be sent to your lawyer a couple of days ahead of the completion date.
Can you clarify what the consequences are if my solicitor is expelled from the RBS Solicitor panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Crystal Palace?
First, this is a very rare occurrence. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit at a cost.
My partner and I are downsizing from our property in Crystal Palace and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a possibility that the property was built on contaminated land. A local lawyer would know this is not the case. For the life of me I don't know why the buyers used a factory type conveyancing firm as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Crystal Palace. We have lived in Crystal Palace for six years we know that this is a non issue. Should we get in touch with our local Authority to seek clarification need.
It would appear that you have a conveyancing firm already. What do they say? You must enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same sickness)
I own a semi-detached Edwardian property in Crystal Palace. Conveyancing solicitor acted for me and The Royal Bank of Scotland. I did a free Land Registry search last week and there are two 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 review 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 owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Crystal Palace and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they sell they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with purchasers. You can also check the situation with the conveyancing lawyer who conducted the purchase.
The estate agent has sent us the confirmation of our purchase of a new build apartment in Crystal Palace. Conveyancing is necessary evil 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 legal work.
Here are examples of a selection of leasehold new build enquiries that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Crystal Palace
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Please confirm the Lease plans are architect prepared. The Vendor must covenant to keep unsold units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. Investor purchasers must be able to freely grant unsecured tenancies at market rents without requiring any consents. If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision.
Do I need to be concerned that brokers that I am dealing with are recommending a factory type conveyancing firm as opposed to a High Street Crystal Palace conveyancing firm?
As is the case with lots of service providers, often recommendations from relatives can be worth their weight in gold. Yet there are numerous players in a conveyancing transaction; estate agents, financial adviser and lenders might all recommend lawyers to use. Sometimes these conveyancers might be known to one of the organisations as one of the best in their field, but occasionally there exists a commercial relationship behind the endorsement. You are at liberty to appoint your own conveyancer. Don't forget that the majority of mortgage providers specify a panel list of solicitors you are obliged to use for the mortgage aspect of your conveyancing.