Have just purchased a probate house at auction in Hillsborough. Conveyancing is needed. What is next?
Having exchanged you should find a conveyancing practitioner quickly as you now have a pending deadline in which to complete the transaction. Every auction property should have a corresponding auction set of papers. This will include the copy title deeds, local authority and drainage searches. If you have purchased leasehold property the auction papers should contain a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and associated conveyancing paperwork pertinent to a leasehold property. You must give this to your appointed conveyancing solicitor at the earliest opportunity. You also need to ensure that you have funds organised to complete the transaction on the set completion date.
I currently have a mortgage with Lloyds for my property in Hillsborough. Conveyancing has been completed 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 Lloyds?
Your original mortgage agreement with Lloyds will provide that you need their approval prior to renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of Lloyds’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies 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 Lloyds directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Lloyds conveyancing panel firm.
It is not clear whether my bank obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have called into my local Hillsborough building society branch on various occasions and was told they are content with the situation and they will lend. My Hillsborough conveyancing solicitor - who is on the bank conveyancing panel- called and was told they refuse to lend in accordance with their UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook minimum lease term requirements. I have no idea who is right.
The solicitor must follow the CML Handbook Part 2 provisions for your lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the lender will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the lender to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
Will my solicitor be raising questions regarding flooding during the conveyancing in Hillsborough.
Flooding is a growing risk for conveyancers dealing with homes in Hillsborough. There are those who acquire a property in Hillsborough, completely expectant that at some time, it may be flooded. However, leaving to one side the physical destruction, if a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, adequate building insurance, or dispose of the premises. Steps can be carried out as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the buyer.
Solicitors are not best placed to offer advice on flood risk, but there are a various searches that can be carried out by the buyer or by their lawyers which can give them a better understanding of the risks in Hillsborough. The conventional set of information supplied to a buyer’s solicitor (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) includes a standard question of the seller to determine whether the premises has suffered from flooding. If flooding has previously occurred and is not disclosed by the vendor, then a buyer could commence a legal claim for losses as a result of such an inaccurate reply. A buyer’s conveyancers will also carry out an enviro report. This will reveal whether there is any known flood risk. If so, further investigations will need to be conducted.
About to purchase a new build flat in Hillsborough. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build legal work.
Here are examples of a selection of leasehold new build enquiries that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Hillsborough
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The Landlord must covenant to assume the management if the Management Company goes into liquidation or otherwise defaults in running the management scheme. Please supply evidence that the form of Lease proposed has been approved by the Land Registry. There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants. Investor purchasers must be able to freely grant unsecured tenancies at market rents without requiring any consents. Please confirm the Lease plans are surveyor prepared.
My husband and I are new on the property ladder - had an offer accepted, yet the agent informed us that the seller will only proceed if we instruct the agent's preferred conveyancers as they need a ‘quick sale’. My instinct tells me that we should use a family solicitor with experience of conveyancing in Hillsborough
We suspect that the seller is unaware of this request. Should the owner desire ‘a quick sale', alienating a serious purchaser is likely to cause more damage than good. Bypass the agents and go straight to the owners and make the point that (a)you are keen to buy (b)you are excited to move forward, with finances in place © you do not need to sell (d) you intend to proceed fast (e)however you will continue to appoint your preferred Hillsborough conveyancing firm - not the ones that will provide their estate agent a commission or hit his conveyancing targets demanded by senior management.
I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Hillsborough which have about 50 years unexpired on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?
There are plenty of short leases in Hillsborough. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As the lease shortens the saleability of the lease deteriorates and it becomes more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies may be unwilling to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field.
Hillsborough Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing
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Be sure to find out if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. By way of example it is fairly common in Hillsborough leases that pets are not permitted in in a block in Hillsborough. If you love the flatin Hillsborough however your cat is not allowed to make the move with you then you will be presented with a hard compromise. Does the lease have in excess of 82 years left? Can you inform me if there are any major works in the near future that will add a premium to the maintenance fees?
Is it true that a Hillsborough conveyancing firm taken to court by a client for not carrying out comprehensive conveyancing investigations?
Our attention has not be brought to such a Hillsborough conveyancing matter but it has been reported that, clients acquiring a house elsewhere in England successfully won a claim against their conveyancing practitioner due to development permission to build a wind farm not being picked up in conveyancing searches.
If you are buying in Hillsborough It is essential that your solicitor conduct all Hillsborough conveyancing searches needed to ensure you have relevant and up to date information before buying a home in Hillsborough.