My son-in-law is buying a new build apartment in Devon with a home loan from Skipton. His solicitor has said that there is a delay in receiving the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. This document is news to me - what is it and who needs sight of it?
The form is intended to provide information to the main parties engaged in the purchase. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Skipton conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when requested. 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 Skipton conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
The Devon conveyancing lawyers that just started acting on my purchase in Devon have without warning closed. I chose them because I had to have a firm on the Santander conveyancing panel and my previous Devon lawyer was not. I wrote them a cheque for £250 in advance. What should be my next steps?
Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then inform them straight away so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to the problems encountered. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Santander conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers may be able to assist.
I purchased my house on 13 May and the transaction details is yet to be registered. Any reason for this? My conveyancing solicitor in Devon advises it will be dealt with inside ten days. Are properties in Devon particularly slow to register?
As far as conveyancing in Devon registration is no faster or slower than anywhere else in the country. Rather than based on location, timescales can differ subject to the party submitting the application, whether it is in order and if the Land registry need to notify any other parties. As of today approximately 80% of submission are completed within 12 days but some can be subject to longer delays. Registration takes place after the new owner is living at the premises therefore an expedited registration is not always an essential issue but if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your conveyancer can speak with the land registry and explain the circumstances.
Due to the input of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Devon ahead of appointing lawyers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. Our surveyor advised that some lenders tend refuse to grant a mortgage on a flying freehold property.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Lloyds has different instructions from Birmingham Midshires. If you contact us we can check via the appropriate lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Devon. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
We are 14 days into a leasehold purchase having been directed to conveyancers by the local agent to carry out the conveyancing in Devon. We are not happy. Could you help me find new solicitors?
They would need to be really poor in order to consider replacing them. Has the loan offer been issued? If so you must make them aware of the new contact details and ensure the mortgage documents are re-sent. The conveyancer should be on the lenders panel to avoid supplemental costs and delays. So that should be your first question of the new conveyancers. Our find a solicitor tool should assist you in finding a bank approved conveyancer for your conveyancing in Devon
Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a leasehold property in Devon. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they report fully tomorrow. What should I be looking out for?
The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Devon should include some of the following:
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What you can do if an adjoining owner breaches a clause of their lease? Information as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - in relation to the building, and the more general rights a tenant enjoys Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property? Setting out your legal entitlements in relation to common areas in the building.For example, does the lease grant a right of way over a path or staircase? You should have a good understanding of the building insurance provisions
Devon Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries before Purchasing
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If a Devon lease has no more than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the value of the apartment. Check with your lender that they are happy with residual term of the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely need a lease extension sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering what this would cost. For most Devonlease extensions you would need to own the property for two years in order to be eligible to extend the lease. Can you tell me if there are any major works in the planning that will likely add a premium to the service charges?