I have given 2 months notice to my current landlord and must vacate my rented apartment in East Sheen by 22/12/2026. Conveyancing for my house purchase is progressing. Is it possible to complete in six weeks as I wish to avoid having to move into temporary accommodation?
It is unwise to provide notice on a rental unless exchange of contracts has taken place. If you have not already done so, speak to your lawyer and ask them to they apply pressure on the sellers lawyers, try to get a realistic time scale from them that everyone will aim to achieve
My uncle passed away six months ago and as sole heir and executor I was left the property in East Sheen. The house had a small mortgage remaining of approximately £8000. I want to transfer the title deeds into my name whilst I re-mortgage to Leeds Building Society, pay off the mortgage. Is this allowed?
If you intend to re-mortgage then Leeds Building Society will require that you use a conveyancer on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel. Here is link to the Land Registry online guidance around what to do when a property owner dies. This will help you to understand the registration process behind changing the details re the registered title. in your case it would appear that you are effectively purchasing the property from the estate. Your Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel solicitor pays the new mortgage money into the estate, the estate pays off the old mortgage, the charge is released and you become the owner and the Leeds Building Society mortgage is registered as a charge at the Land Registry.
My wife and I are buying a property in East Sheen. I might seem paranoid but how we can trust a lawyer? At some point we will need to deposit our life savings into their account. What protection do we have from them run away with our money?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
Forgive me if this question is silly but I am wet behind the ears as a first time purchaser of a garden flat in East Sheen. Do I collect the keys to the house on completion from my conveyancer? If this is the case, I will appoint a local conveyancing solicitor in East Sheen?
There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Conveyancing lawyers for you will arrange to send the purchase money to the seller's solicitors, and once they have received this, you will be called to receive the keys from the selling Agents and start moving into the property. Usually this happens between 1 and 3pm.
We expect to receive a OIP from Aldermore this week so we can work out what to offer on a property we like as otherwise we are dependent on web based calculators (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do Aldermore recommend any East Sheen solicitors on the Aldermore conveyancing panel, or is it better to find our own lawyer?
You will need to appoint East Sheen solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Aldermore conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and Aldermore through the process.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I have offered on a fortnight ago in what was supposed to be a simple, no chain conveyancing. East Sheen is the location of the property. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in East Sheen are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside East Sheen you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds very carefully. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in East Sheen may decide that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold property.
I inherited a garden flat in East Sheen. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the amount due for the purchase of the freehold?
Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a East Sheen conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a East Sheen residence is 19 St. Margarets Crescent in August 2010. the tribunal was of the view that the premium to be paid by the leaseholder for the freehold reversion was £51,983.00 This case affected 3 flats. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 66.25 years.
What are the frequently found defects that you encounter in leases for East Sheen properties?
There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in East Sheen. All leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:
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Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Santander, Leeds Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to pull out.
What do I do if I am not happy with the solicitor who handled our conveyancing in East Sheen?
We live in an imperfect world, and unfortunately every so often things do go wrong. That being said there is recourse where you were dissatisfied with your conveyancing in East Sheen. This varies from trying to resolve matters directly with them, through to reporting a conveyancing practitioner to their governing body. If things still aren’t resolved you may consider enlisting the help of the Legal Ombudsman.