My husband and I are looking to acquire a flat in Farnham Common and have instructed a Farnham Common conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our conveyancer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Chelsea Building Society have this morning contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Farnham Common conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Is this a problem?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is standard for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Farnham Common solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
My colleague recommended that where I am buying in Farnham Common I should carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?
A search of this type is usually included in the estimate for your Farnham Common conveyancing searches. It is not a small report of more than thirty pages, listing and setting out significant information about Farnham Common around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime details, Local Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information concerning Farnham Common.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up as part of conveyancing in Farnham Common?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Farnham Common. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
I am buying my first flat in Farnham Common benefiting from help to buy. The sellers refused to reduce the price so I negotiated 6k of additionals instead. The house builders rep advised me not reveal to my lawyer about the deal as it will affect my mortgage with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
Given that I will soon part with over three hundred thousand on a garden flat in Farnham Common I would like to talk to a conveyancer about myhome move before appointing the firm. Can this be arranged?
This is something that we recommend - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you speaking to the conveyancer due to be carrying out your conveyancing in Farnham Common.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is an important person, not a case reference. The law firms that we put you in touch with believe that the fees you are quoted for residential conveyancing in Farnham Common should be the amount on the final invoice that you end up paying.
I am attracted to a couple of flats in Farnham Common which have approximately 50 years remaining on the leases. Will this present a problem?
There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Farnham Common is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the salability of the property. For most purchasers and lenders, leases with under eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Farnham Common conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease. You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.
I acquired a leasehold flat in Farnham Common, conveyancing was carried out 4 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent flats in Farnham Common with over 90 years remaining are worth £222,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2096
With only 71 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as legals.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.