When does exchange of contracts occur in domestic conveyancing in East Sussex and am I required to attend the solicitors branch?
If you are near to our conveyancing solicitors in East Sussex you are invited in to sign contracts. That being said, the law practices we recommend provide countrywide coverage for conveyancing and give just as detailed and professional a job for you when dealing with you electronically. The executing of the sale agreement is not when everything is set in stone. Signing on the dotted line is just a prerequisite for the firm to exchange contracts when the time is right, which is ordinarily shortly after signing. The procedure is nowadays normally dealt with by telephone and can be very rapid, although where an extended "chain" is in the mix, since the process requires the relevant party's solicitor (not necessarily a conveyancing solicitor in East Sussex)to be in the office at the appropriate time.
We wanted to use a property lawyer in East Sussex for our house move. Our financial adviser informed us that our mortgage lenders Leeds Building Society won't deal with them. Surely this is unfair competition?
Banks in the main restrict either the type or the number of conveyancing solicitors on their approved list of lawyers. Typical examples of such criteria being that a firm must not be a sole practitioner. As well as restricting the profile of firm, some have reduced the number of solicitor practices they permit to represent them. Be aware that Leeds Building Society have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any member of Leeds Building Society Conveyancer Panel. Mortgage fraud was a key driver in the reduction of solicitor panels a few years ago even though there remains differing views about the extent of solicitor engagement in some of that fraud. Figures from the Land Registry reveal that plenty of law firms, including some in or near East Sussex only perform very few conveyances per annum.
My lawyer has informed me that lack of planning permission insurance is required on my purchase. What is the level of cover for East Sussex conveyancing?
The appropriate level of lack of planning permission indemnity insurance should be dictated by who your lender. It would differ for example between Barclays and Coventry Building Society. Conveyancing practitioners as opposed to borrowers take out such insurances.
I had a mortgage agreed in principle with Bank of Ireland. East Sussex conveyancing practitioners are instructed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from Bank of Ireland?
There is no definitive answer here. Have Bank of Ireland done the valuation? Have you advised Bank of Ireland as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel? Sometimes it can take as long as six weeks for a mortgage offer to be issued.
The formalities of my purchase has taken place for my property in East Sussex. Conveyancing was satisfactory but I would like to complain about the lender. Who do I contact should I wish to lodge a complaint?
All lenders have complaints procedures. Your first port of call should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Services Team at head office. In most cases complaints to a lender are sorted out effectively and efficiently. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR with full details of your complaint.
How does conveyancing in East Sussex differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in East Sussex contact us having been asked by the housebuilder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is finished. This is because builders in East Sussex typically purchase the real estate, 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 East Sussex or who has acted in the same development.
I'm refinancing my existing home to a buy to let mortgage with Nationwide Building Society and I will use the ballance of the raised equity as a down payment on another property. The area we are looking at is East Sussex. Will your solicitors be able to act for the two lenders and link together the two deals?
Do use our search tool on this page to ensure that the conveyancers are on the appropriate lender panels. On the basis that they are your conveyancer should be able to tie up the two deals but you should have a chat with you lawyer and communicate your desired outcome and requirements.
Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in East Sussex from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?
- A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in East Sussex can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers’ lawyers. If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over rather than unsettled. Some East Sussex leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers. If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Organising a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy formality and slows down many a East Sussex home move. Where a new share certificate is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity. In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? East Sussex leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. If you dont have the consents in place you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your lawyer in the first instance.
Leasehold Conveyancing in East Sussex - A selection of Questions you should consider Prior to buying
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Please note that where the lease has less than eighty years it will impact the marketability of the property. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. A short lease means that you will probably need a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you will be be obliged to have owned the residence for two years before you are eligible to carry out a lease extension. It would be wise to discover if the the lease contains any onerous restrictions in the lease. By way of example plenty of leases prohibit pets being permitted in in a block in East Sussex. If you love the propertyin East Sussex however your dog is not allowed to live with you then you will be faced difficult determination. You should want to discover as much as you can about the managing agents as they can either make your living at the property much easier or much more difficult. As the owner of a leasehold property you are frequently at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to day to day issues such as the upkeep of the common parts. You should not be afraid to ask prospective neighbours what they think of them. On a final note, be sure you discover the dates that you are obliged pay the service charge to the managing agents and precisely what you get for your money.