My partner and I intend to remortgage our maisonette in Llanmartin with Kent Reliance. We have a son 18 who lives at home. Our solicitor requested us to identify anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who reside at the property. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the property is repossessed. I have a couple of concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we purchased 3 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this extinguish his rights to inherit the property?
On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Kent Reliance. This is solely used to protect Kent Reliance if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Kent Reliance had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
We are expecting a mortgage offer soon. The lender mentioned the loan came with free conveyancing. Is the implication that I have to appoint their panel lawyer as I would prefer to use a Llanmartin based conveyancing firm?
You should check but the the probability is that allocate you one of their panel conveyancers should you want the "fee-free" offer. Speak to the lender to determine if they make available a cash alternative. In the past a few lenders offered a £250 cashback as an alternative in which case that money can go towards the cost for your conveyancing solicitor in Llanmartin.
How does conveyancing in Llanmartin differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in Llanmartin contact us having been asked by the builder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is finished. This is because developers in Llanmartin usually buy the land, 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 Llanmartin or who has acted in the same development.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and identified one round the corner in Llanmartin I like with a park and railway links nearby, the downside is that it only has 51 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Llanmartin in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?
If you need a home loan that many years may be a potential deal breaker. Discount the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you could request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer concerning this.
What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Llanmartin conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?
When appointing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Llanmartin conveyancing practice) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggest that you talk with two or three firms including non Llanmartin conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions could be useful:
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How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation? What are the legal fees for lease extension work?
Llanmartin Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries before Purchasing
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The answer will be helpful as a) areas could result in problems for the block as the common areas may begin to deteriorate where services remain unpaid b) if the tenants have an issue with the managing agents you will wish to have complete disclosure For most Llanmartin leaseholds the outlay for major works tend not to be built into the maintenance charges, although a few managing agents in Llanmartin require tenants to contribute towards a reserve fund created for the specific intention of establishing a fund for major repairs or maintenance. The prefered form of lease structure is if the freehold title is owned by the leaseholders. In this scenario the lessees benefit from control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is usually retained if the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves.
How much experience do your Llanmartin conveyancing solicitors have with Help To Buy, Shared Equity and similar schemes?
Llanmartin conveyancing lawyers help thousands of buyers move home every year and helped lots of clients through the Help To Buy scheme. The chances are that whatever makes your case unique Llanmartin conveyancers have worked on recent similar matters.