I was referred a solicitor who has quoted £1350 for no move no fee conveyancing in Gravesend. I am hoping to downsize from a modern property for £250,000. This sounds overpriced. Is it above what I should be paying for conveyancing in Gravesend?
The charges are a bit high. If you shop around you could decrease the fees marginally by perhaps £100 plus VAT. On the other hand, you maylive to regret opting for an an unknown conveyancer. Remember to enquire that the solicitor can represent your lender. Do employ our comparison tool to find a Gravesend conveyancing company on the banks conveyancing panel which can often include conveyancing solicitors in Gravesend.
My aunt passed away 10 months ago and as sole heir and executor I was left the property in Gravesend. The house had a small mortgage remaining of approximately £4500. I want to have the title changed into my name whilst I re-mortgage to Leeds Building Society, pay off the mortgage. Is this allowed?
Given you intend to refinance 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.
We had appointed conveyancers with offices in Gravesend on the Nottingham solicitor panel. They have just billed me an additional amount for dealing with the Nottingham mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by Nottingham?
Unfortunately, so long as it is in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your conveyancer is entitled to charge a fee for this. This fee is not set by Nottingham but by your Gravesend lawyer. Plenty of firms on the Nottingham panel will charge an ‘acting for lender’ fee but many practices incorporate it on their overall fee.
How can we know in advance if a Gravesend conveyancing solicitor on the Nationwide panel is any good?
When it comes to conveyancing in Gravesend getting recommendations is a good start. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one advertising the lowest fees. We would always suggest that you speak with the lawyer carrying out your transaction.
We expect to receive a OIP from RBS 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 RBS recommend any Gravesend solicitors on the RBS conveyancing panel, or is it better to go independently?
You will need to appoint Gravesend solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the RBS conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and RBS through the process.
I'm purchasing my first flat in Gravesend with the aid of help to buy. The sellers would not budge the amount so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The sale representative told me not reveal to my lawyer about this deal as it may jeopardize my mortgage with TSB. Should I keep quiet?.
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.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a ground for flat up to £245,000 and identified one close by in Gravesend I like with open areas and transport links nearby, however it only has 52 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Gravesend in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a short lease?
Should you need a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term may be an issue. Discount the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current owner has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you could ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer regarding this matter.
I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Gravesend where we have witnessed a few flat sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Gravesend conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the buyer?
Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.
An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.
Gravesend Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries Prior to Purchasing
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What prohibitions are there in the Gravesend Lease? Are there any major works in the near future that will likely add a premium to the service costs? Please note if it is less than 80 years it will affect the salability of the property. Check with your lender that they are content with residual term of the lease. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will probably have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering how much this would cost. Remember, in most cases you would need to own the premises for two years before you are legally able to extend the lease.