My husband and I are hoping to buy a 2 bedroom apartment in Knighton with a mortgage. We have a Knighton lawyer, however the mortgage company says she’s not on their "panel". It seems we have no choice but to select one of the lender panel conveyancing practices or retain our Knighton conveyancing practitioner and pay for one of their panel ones to represent them. We consider that this is inequitable; is there anything we can do?
Unfortunately,no. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your Knighton conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
My husband and I are in the process of looking at apartments in Knighton and I am about to put in an offer. Is it advisable to have my property lawyer on ‘stand by’? I intend to finance via a mortgage with Barclays.
It would be wise to start your search sooner rather than later. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their details on to the selling agent. Given that you are obtaining a mortgage with Barclays, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the Barclays conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.
UBS have agreed my home loan in principle, my bid on a house in Knighton has been agreed to, what happens next?
The estate agent will wish to be informed of your property lawyer's details (ensure that the lawyers are on the bank’s panel). Telephone UBS or the financial adviser and finish off any relevant paperwork. UBS will appoint a valuer who will get in contact with the selling agent or seller to book a time for the valuation to take place. Once conducted (assuming no problems) it takes approximately a fortnight for the mortgage offer to be issued. UBS will issue the offer to you and your solicitors. The transaction will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing in Knighton.
Our offer on a detached house in Knighton has been accepted, but there is a chain. The vendors have placed an offer on a flat, but it’s not been accepted yet, and have viewings of other properties in the pipeline. I have instructed a local conveyancing solicitor in Knighton. What do I do now? At what stage should I apply for the mortgage with Coventry BS?
It is normal to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur costs too early (mortgage application is in the region of one thousand pounds, then valuation, Knighton conveyancing search charges, etc). First, you should check that your conveyancing practitioner is on the Coventry BS approved list. Concerning the subsequent steps this very much depends on the uniqueness of your case, attraction to the property and on the state of the market. During a buoyant market many purchasers will apply for a home loan with Coventry BS and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they ask their conveyancer to move forward with searches.
I have been told that property searches are the number one reason for delay in Knighton conveyancing transactions. Is there any truth in this?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) published findings of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature amongst the most frequent causes of delays in the conveyancing process. Searches are unlikely to feature in any delay in conveyancing in Knighton.
I am purchasing my first flat in Knighton with a mortgage from Chelsea Building Society. The developers would not move on the amount so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The property agent told me not inform my solicitor about this extras as it may adversely affect my loan with Chelsea Building Society. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer 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.
I decided to have a survey done on a house in Knighton in advance of appointing lawyers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold overhang to the house. My surveyor has said that some mortgage companies will not issue a mortgage on this type of house.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Bank of Scotland has different instructions for example to Birmingham Midshires. Should you wish to telephone us we can look into this further with the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Knighton. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Knighton to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.
My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Knighton. Conveyancing and Platform Home Loans Ltd mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in Knighton who acted for me is not around. Do I pay?
First contact the Land Registry to make sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Knighton conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.
I acquired a garden flat in Knighton, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Comparable flats in Knighton with a long lease are worth £176,000. The ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2105
With just 80 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £8,600 and £9,800 plus legals.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending 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 tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.