Much to our surprise we have been told by our broker that my Didsbury property lawyer is not on the lender Solicitor panel. What can I do to be sure if this is correct?
You need to call your Didsbury lawyer directly. It is reasonable to expect your lawyer to inform you what has happened. Where they are not on the panel they may be able to suggest a Didsbury conveyancing practice that is on the conveyancing panel for your bank.
My husband and I are refinancing our flat in Didsbury with Santander. We have a son 18 who lives with us. Our solicitor requested us to identify anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who lives in the flat. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the flat is forfeited by the lender. I have a couple of concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Santander conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we purchased 3 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this extinguish his entitlement to inherit the property?
On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong 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 Santander. This is solely used to protect Santander 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 Santander 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.
I used Wolstenholmes several years ago for my conveyancing in Didsbury. Now, I need the files however the law firm has closed. What do I do?
Do contact 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 Didsbury of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously used, 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 Didsbury differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build premises in Didsbury approach us having been asked by the builder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the residence is ready to move into. This is because house builders in Didsbury usually purchase 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 conveyancers 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 Didsbury or who has acted in the same development.
I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agency in Didsbury where we see a number of leasehold sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Didsbury conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.
Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.
I invested in buying a 1st floor flat in Didsbury, conveyancing was carried out 3 years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Didsbury with a long lease are worth £202,000. The ground rent is £60 yearly. The lease ceases on 21st October 2081
You have 56 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £29,500 and £34,000 as well as costs.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs without more detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.
My husband and I have recently had an offer accepted on our 1st home in Didsbury, and are now looking to get solicitors lined up. I have used the different rating tools and the fee estimates are from all across the the UK. Is it essential to have a Didsbury conveyancing practitioner local to our potential new home? I am fine to do all the communicating over the web, but I guess at some point we may need to physically go into the conveyancer's office to sign contracts?
On the whole there is no need to attend the office of your conveyancing practitioner, they can send any relevant documents to you, which you can sign and send back. Many home movers prefer to instruct a locally based solicitor, but it's by no means a prerequisite for conveyancing in Didsbury.