My Conveyancer in Dudley has never been on on the Britannia Approved Panel. Can I still continue with my prefered solicitor notwithstanding that they are excluded from the Britannia panel of approved conveyancing solicitors?
Your options are as follows:
- Carry on with your preferred Dudley lawyers but Britannia will need to retain a conveyancer on their panel. This will inevitably rack up the overall legal charges as well as result in frustration.
- Get a new solicitor to act in the conveyancing, remembering to check they are on the Britannia panel
I am helping my step-mother sell her house in Dudley. Does the conveyancing solicitor order an energy assessment or should I organise this?
After the abolition of Home Packs, energy assessments was maintained a mandatory part of selling a property. An EPC must be commissioned in advance of the property being advertised. This is not something that lawyers normally arrange. If you are using a Dudley conveyancing practitioner they might be willing to arrange energy assessments given their relationships with long established Dudley providers
I happen to be the only recipient of my late mum's will with all property in now in my sole name, including the house in Dudley. The Dudley property was put into my name in November. I now wish to sell up. I do know about the CML six month 'rule', meaning my property ownership could be regarded the same way as though I had purchased the property in November. Do I have to wait 6 months to sell?
The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook requires solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you could be affected by that. many banks would take a practical view as this provision principally exists to capture subsales or the wholesaling and assigning of properties.
After shopping around on the internet I have found a Dudley lawyer having checked that they are on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
Coventry BS will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Coventry BS will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Dudley surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
I got the keys to my house on 5 August and the transaction details is yet to be on the land registry website. Need I be worried? My conveyancing solicitor in Dudley advises it should be registered inside ten days. Are transfers in Dudley uniquely lengthy to register?
As far as conveyancing in Dudley registration is no quicker or slower than the rest of the country. Rather than based on location, timeframes can vary depending on who lodges the application, whether it is in order and if the Land registry communicate with any other parties. At present in the region of 80% of such applications are fully addressed within two weeks but some can be subject to longer hold-ups. Historically registration takes place once the purchaser is living at the premises so an expedited registration is not typically top priority but if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your conveyancer should communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for the application to be prioritised.
How does conveyancing in Dudley differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build residence in Dudley contact us having been asked by the seller to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is built. This is because developers in Dudley tend to buy 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 conveyancing solicitors 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 Dudley or who has acted in the same development.
Am I best advised to go with a Dudley conveyancing lawyer in close proximity to the house I am purchasing? I have an old university friend who can deal with the conveyancing but they are based over three hundred miles drive away.
The primary upside of using a high street Dudley conveyancing firm is that you can visit the firm to sign paperwork, deliver your ID and pester them where appropriate. Having local Dudley know how is a plus. However nothing is more important than finding someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If if people you trust instructed your friend and the majority were impressed that must trump using an unknown Dudley conveyancing lawyer solely due to them being local.
I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Dudley. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?
In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, 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).
Dudley Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries Prior to buying
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Its a good idea to find out as much as possible regarding the company managing the block as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you will be in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to day to day issues like the cleanliness of the communal areas. Ask prospective neighbours what they think of their management. In conclusion, be sure you discover the dates that you are obliged pay the service charge to the managing agents and specifically how they are spending the funds. This question is useful as a) areas can cause problems for the block as the communal areas may start to deteriorate if repairs are not paid for b) if the leasehold owners have an issue with the running of the building you will wish to have full disclosure For most Dudley leaseholds the outlay for major works tend not to be built into the maintenance charges, although there some managing agents in Dudley require tenants to contribute towards a sinking fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance.