I am in the process of selling my house in Honor Oak and the EA has just e-mailed to advise that the purchasers are changing their solicitor. The excuse is that the lender will only engage with property lawyers on their approved list. On what basis would a major lender only work with specific lawyers rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Honor Oak ?
Lenders have always had panels of law firms that can act for them, but in the last few years big names such as HSBC, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for more than 15 years.
Banks point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the pruning – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to keep an eye on. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms are unaware that 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 unlikely to have any impact on this.
We have rather brash vendors who has insisted on a exclusivity contract with a non-refundable deposit two thousand pounds. Are such agreements sensible?
There are a couple of primary concerns with signing a lock out contract (sometimes known as an exclusivity agreement) is that it takes away the focus from making progress with the conveyancing process, so in the absence of it needing little or no negotiation then it could transpire to be unhelpful. It is not promoted by Honor Oak conveyancing lawyers for this reason. A supplemental concern is the extent of the remedies available - an aggrieved buyer is not likely to win an injunctive ruling by a court to prevent the seller selling to an alternative purchaser, so the only remedy available under the agreement will be the recovery of wasted costs and, in limited scenarios, the additional payment of damages.
How does conveyancing in Honor Oak differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build premises in Honor Oak contact us having been asked by the seller to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the residence is completed. This is because builders in Honor Oak usually acquire the real estate, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct property lawyers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Honor Oak or who has acted in the same development.
I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £245,000 and found one near me in Honor Oak I like with amenity areas and transport links in the vicinity, however it's only got 51 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Honor Oak in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a short lease?
Should you require a home loan that many years may be a potential deal breaker. Discount the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you could request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor regarding this.
Taking into account that I will soon part with hundreds of thousands of pounds on a terraced house in Honor Oak I would like to have a conversation with the solicitor about myhome move prior to appointing the firm. Is this something that you can arrange?
Absolutely - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you liaising with the conveyancer who will be doing your property ownership legalities in Honor Oak.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is an important individual, not a matter number. The law firms that we put you in touch with believe that the fees you are provided with for your conveyancing in Honor Oak should be the figure that you are charged.
My parents are unable to locate their Honor Oak land registry title on the website. They recall that 50 years ago when they acquired the house there were complications with the post code not being recognised in some systems.
The vast majority of premises in Honor Oak should be revealed. Have you tried a search to just the postcode. Normally it will identify all the residences inside the postcode. Where registered it will be there with a title number. Where they bought fifty years ago it's conceivable it may be not yet registered. The property might still be revealed but with the title number shown 'na'. In this scenario you will need to track down the original title documentation which might be with your parent’s bank.