I am progressing with the sale of my home in Kirkwhelpington and the estate agent has just called to warn that the buyers are switching law firm. The reason given is that the bank will only work with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a leading lender only work with certain lawyers rather the firm that they want to choose to handle their conveyancing in Kirkwhelpington ?
Banks have always had panels of law firms that can act for them, but in recent years big names such as Santander, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for more than 25 years.
Banks blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says 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 impact on this.
The Kirkwhelpington conveyancing lawyers that I appointed last week on my house acquisition in Kirkwhelpington have without warning closed. They were on acting for me because I had to have a firm on the Santander conveyancing panel and my previous Kirkwhelpington lawyer was not. I paid them £170 on account. What should be my next steps?
Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then inform them straight away so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Santander conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new solicitors may be able to assist.
Will our conveyancer be making enquiries regarding flooding as part of the conveyancing in Kirkwhelpington.
Flooding is a growing risk for solicitors carrying out conveyancing in Kirkwhelpington. There are those who purchase a property in Kirkwhelpington, fully expectant that at some time, it may be flooded. However, leaving to one side the physical destruction, where a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, satisfactory building insurance, or sell the property. Steps can be carried out as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.
Solicitors are not qualified to offer advice on flood risk, however there are a number of searches that may be carried out by the buyer or by their lawyers which will give them a better understanding of the risks in Kirkwhelpington. The standard property information forms sent to a purchaser’s lawyer (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) includes a standard question of the seller to find out if the premises has historically flooded. If flooding has previously occurred which is not notified by the seller, then a purchaser may bring a legal claim for losses as a result of such an inaccurate reply. A buyer’s solicitors should also commission an enviro search. This will higlight whether there is any known flood risk. If so, additional inquiries should be made.
Just had an offer accepted on a new build flat in Kirkwhelpington. Conveyancing is daunting 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 conveyancing.
Here is a sample of a few leasehold new build questions that you should expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Kirkwhelpington
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Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants. The Vendor must covenant to keep unoccupied units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier? The Landlord must covenant to assume the management if the Management Company goes into liquidation or otherwise defaults in running the management scheme.
I am attracted to a two maisonettes in Kirkwhelpington both have about 50 years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?
There are plenty of short leases in Kirkwhelpington. The lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As a lease shortens the value of the lease deteriorates and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena.
I own a ground floor flat in Kirkwhelpington, conveyancing was carried out 10 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable flats in Kirkwhelpington with over 90 years remaining are worth £185,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2085
You have 60 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to range between £20,000 and £23,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.
I am short of a 10% deposit on my apartment purchase in Kirkwhelpington , but I am keen go ahead. What can I do?
One option is to try and agree a lower deposit. Many vendors will accept a lesser deposit or even no deposit for a first time buyer or 100% mortgage. Be aware though that if you fail to complete you will still need to hand over a minimum of 10% of the purchase price regardless of how much deposit was agreed.
You can also agree a simultaneous exchange and completion as no deposit is required for this however neither party will be tied in until completion actually takes place and it can be risky if sellers change their mind at the last minute