I was told yesterday by my financial adviser that my Henfield lawyer is not on the lender Conveyancing panel. What can I do to check?
The first thing you need to do is to call your Henfield conveyancer. It is reasonable to expect your lawyer to advise you what has happened. If they are not on the panel they may recommend you to a Henfield conveyancing firm that is on the approved list of lawyers for your bank.
It is is a decade since I acquired my property in Henfield. Conveyancing solicitors have recently been appointed on the sale but I can't locate the title documents. Is this a problem?
Don’t worry too much. First the deeds may be kept by your lender or they could still be with the solicitor who oversaw the purchase. Secondly the likelihood is that the land will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to prove you are the registered owner by your conveyancing solicitors procuring up to date copy of the land registers. Almost all conveyancing in Henfield relates to registered property but in the rare situation where your home is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is not insurmountable.
This question may be naive but I am wet behind the ears as FTB of a ground floor flat in Henfield. Do I pick up the keys to the premises on completion from my solicitor? If this is the case, I will find a High Street conveyancing solicitor in Henfield?
There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Conveyancing lawyers for you will transfer the purchase money to the seller's conveyancers, and once they have received this, you will be called to collect the keys from the Estate Agents and move into your new home. Usually this occurs early afternoon.
I have a mortgage with UBS for my property in Henfield. Conveyancing was finalised months ago. If I am intending to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform UBS?
Your original mortgage agreement with UBS will provide that you need their approval prior to letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of UBS’s mortgage conditions. It may be that UBS will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact UBS directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a UBS conveyancing panel lawyer.
I have finally had an offer on an apartment in Henfield agreed to, but there is a chain. The owners have offered on a flat, but it’s not yet agreed to, and have viewings of other properties in the pipeline. I have chosen a bricks and mortar conveyancing solicitor in Henfield. What should be my next step? When do I get the mortgage application with UBS started?
It is usual to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket prematurely (mortgage application is approx one thousand pounds, then survey, Henfield conveyancing search fees, etc). The first course of action is to ensure that your property lawyer is on the UBS approved list. Concerning the subsequent phase this very much depends on the uniqueness of your case, desire for this property and on the state of the market. During a buoyant market the majority of purchasers will apply for the mortgage with UBS and pay for the valuation and only if it was satisfactory would they pay their property lawyer to proceed with searches.
I decided to have a survey carried out on a house in Henfield in advance of retaining lawyers. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold element to the property. My surveyor has said that some lenders may refuse to give a mortgage on such a home.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Lloyds has different instructions from Nationwide. If you call us we can check via the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Henfield. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Henfield to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.
In my capacity as executor for the estate of my grandmother I am disposing of a residence in Swansea but I am based in Henfield. My lawyer (based 260 kilometers awayhas requested that I sign a statutory declaration prior to the transaction finalising. Could you suggest a conveyancing lawyer in Henfield to attest this legal document for me?
strictly speaking you are unlikely to be required to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Normally or notary public or solicitor will suffice regardless of whether they are Henfield based
I own a leasehold flat in Henfield. Conveyancing was finalised in 2009. I have read on numerous advice forums that I mustn’t allow the the remaining lease term to get too short. Is this correct?
Henfield leasehold properties are for a set period - usually 99 years when they started. However a significant appartments in Henfield were built or converted in the 60’s and so such leases now have fewer than eighty years left to run. That may seem like a long time but Banks, Building Societies and other mortgage companies on the whole require leases to have at least 75 years remaining to be mortgageable. Accordingly when you come to sell the property you will need to extend the term of your lease if you are approaching 75 years. To enhance your property value you should be considering whether or not to extend your lease long before you come to sell it. Furthermore advantages to taking action before the lease hits eighty years as when the lease falls below eighty years the amount you have to pay to extend starts to get a lot more expensive.