My fiance and I intend to remortgage our maisonette in Finchampstead with Virgin Money. We have a son approaching twenty who lives at home. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the flat is repossessed. I have two concerns (1) Is this document specific to the Virgin Money conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we bought 5 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this compromise his rights 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 Virgin Money. This is solely used to protect Virgin Money 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 Virgin Money 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.
is it true that all Finchampstead conveyancing solicitors on the Co-operative conveyancing panel are governed by the SRA?
As solicitors, in order to be on the Co-operative conveyancing panel they would need to be overseen by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. Some mortgage companies do permit licenced conveyancers on their panel and in that case the firms would be governed by the CLC.
I am currently in the process of buying my council flat in Finchampstead. I have a mortgage offer with Santander. Conveyancing is new to me. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should have one. Any advice?
It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with Santander, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Santander conveyancing panel.
I am selling my house. I had a double glazing fitted in April 2007, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's lender, RBS are being difficult. The Finchampstead solicitor who is on the RBS conveyancing panel is happy to accept ‘lack of building regulation’ insurance but RBS are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do RBS have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that RBS have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why RBS may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
I am purchasing my first flat in Finchampstead with a loan from Aldermore. The developers refused to budge the price so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The property agent suggested that I not disclose to my solicitor about this side-deal as it may jeopardize my mortgage with Aldermore. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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.
I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £305k and identified one close by in Finchampstead I like with amenity areas and station in the vicinity, however it only has 52 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Finchampstead in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a lease with such few years left?
If you require a mortgage the shortness of the lease will be problematic. Reduce the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you can ask them to start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor concerning this.
How does the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 affect my commercial property in Finchampstead and how can your lawyers assist?
The 1954 Act provides security of tenure to business leaseholders, granting the dueness to apply to court for a new tenancy and remain in occupation when the lease reaches an end. There are limited grounds where a landlord can refuse a lease renewal and the rules are complex. Fees are different for commercial conveyancing. Finchampstead is one of our many locations in which the firms we work with have offices
My partner and I may need to let out our Finchampstead basement flat temporarily due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Finchampstead conveyancing firm in 2001 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?
Some leases for properties in Finchampstead do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience suggests that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting permission.
I own a split level flat in Finchampstead, conveyancing formalities finalised 9 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Finchampstead with over 90 years remaining are worth £216,000. The ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease ends on 21st October 2094
You have 69 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.