I am nearing exchange of contracts for my ground floor flat in Gurnard and the estate agent has just e-mailed to advise that the buyers are appointing a new solicitor. I am told that this is due to the fact that the mortgage company will only work with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. Why would a leading lender only engage with certain lawyers rather the firm that they want to appoint for their conveyancing in Gurnard ?
Mortgage companies have always had an approved set of law firms they are content to work with, but in the last few years big names such as HSBC, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for many years.
Mortgage companies point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. Banks tend not to disclose how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Some do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your purchasers are not going to have any sway in the decision.
My partner and I have recently acquired a property in Gurnard. We have noticed several problems with the property which we consider were omitted in the conveyancing searches. Is there anything we can do? What searches should? have been carried out for conveyancing in Gurnard?
It is not clear from the question as to the nature of the problems and if they are relate to conveyancing in Gurnard. Conveyancing searches and investigations undertaken as part of the legal transfer of property are supposed to help avoid problems. As part of the legal transfer of property, the vendor answers a document called a Seller’s Property Information Form. If the information ends up being incorrect, then you may have a claim against the seller for any losses that you have suffered. The survey should have identified any problems with the structure of the property. Assuming a detailed survey was carried out and the issues were not identified, you may have a claim against the surveyor. However, if you did not have a full survey, you may be responsible for fixing any defects that have now been noted. We would always encourage buyers to take every possible step to ensure they are completely aware of the condition of a property before purchase regardless of whether they are buying in Gurnard.
My wife and I have recently appointed a conveyancing solicitor in Gurnard. I I am struggling to find out if they are accepted on the Leeds Building Society approved list of lawyers. Can you help?
You should call your lawyer and ask them whether they can act for the lender. Alternatively you can call Leeds Building Society who may be able to help.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up during conveyancing in Gurnard?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Gurnard. 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 opted to have a survey carried out on a property in Gurnard in advance of appointing lawyers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold element to the house. The surveyor has said that some mortgage companies will not issue a loan on a flying freehold home.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Santander has different instructions from Nationwide. Should you wish to call us we can check with the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Gurnard. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Gurnard to see if the conveyancing costs will increase in light of this.
I have just appointed agents to market my ground floor apartment in Gurnard. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed, but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?
It best that you pay the service charge as usual as all rents and service charges should be apportioned on completion, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.
I bought a ground floor flat in Gurnard, conveyancing formalities finalised 10 years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Similar properties in Gurnard with a long lease are worth £176,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2076
With just 50 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £31,400 and £36,200 plus legals.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.