My fiance and I are looking to purchase a property in Kingsthorpe and are in fact using a Kingsthorpe conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our solicitor has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Norwich and Peterborough Building Society have this morning contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Kingsthorpe solicitor is not on their conveyancing panel. What do we do from here?
When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the bank's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Kingsthorpe lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
My flat in Kingsthorpe is up for sale and I have a purchaser. Does the conveyancer have to be required to be on the Principality conveyancing panel in order to deal with the discharge of my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Principality conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. It might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their panel criteria fairly frequently at the moment.
What can a local search tell me regarding the property I am purchasing in Kingsthorpe?
Kingsthorpe conveyancing often commences with the applying for local authority searches directly from your local Authority or through a personal search organisations such as Onsearch The local search is essential in every Kingsthorpe conveyancing purchase; that is if you don’t want any nasty once you have moved into your new home. The search will supply data on, amongst other things, details on planning applications applicable to the premises (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 subject headings.
I'm purchasing a new build house in Kingsthorpe benefiting from help to buy. The sellers refused to move on the amount so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The sale representative told me not disclose to my lawyer about the side-deal as it would jeopardize my mortgage with Accord Mortgages Ltd. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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 £195,000 and found one round the corner in Kingsthorpe I like with a park and railway links in the vicinity, the downside is that it only has 61 years on the lease. There is not much else in Kingsthorpe in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a short lease?
If you require a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term may be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the property for a minimum of twenty four months you could request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer about this matter.
Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Kingsthorpe from the perspective of expediting the sale process?
- Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Kingsthorpe can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers’ lawyers. If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic rather than ongoing. If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Arranging a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming process and slows down many a Kingsthorpe conveyancing transaction. Where a reissued share certificate is required, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity. If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Kingsthorpe leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such alterations. Should you dont have the approvals to hand you should not contact the landlord without checking with your lawyer in advance. Some Kingsthorpe leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
I am the registered owner of a split level flat in Kingsthorpe, conveyancing having been completed 5 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Kingsthorpe with an extended lease are worth £216,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease ceases on 21st October 2094
With only 69 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.