We are acquiring a brand new flat in Longridge and my solicitor is informing me that she is duty bound to the bank to reveal incentives from the developer. I am on a tight deadline to exchange contracts and I have no desire to prolong deal. Is my lawyer right?
You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your lawyer. A precondition to being on a bank panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook provisions. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.
When it comes to lenders such as Barclays, do Longridge lawyers face a fee to be on the conveyancing panel?
We are not aware of any mortgage company fees to register on their list of approved firms, although some do charge an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.
We are getting a further advance on our home loan from TSB as we want to conduct a loft conversion to our home in Longridge. Do we need to choose a local Longridge solicitor on the TSB conveyancing panel to handle the paperwork?
TSB would not normally appoint firms on their conveyancing panel to deal with the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the TSB list.
I recently had an offer accepted on an apartment in Longridge. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their lawyer. I paid an advanced payment of £200. A few days later, the lawyer contacted me sheepishly admitting that they were not on the UBS conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the UBS panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.
We are downsizing from our property in Longridge and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a risk of it being constructed land that was not decontaminated. Any local conveyancer would know that there is no such problem. It does beg the question why the buyers are using a web based conveyancing firm rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Longridge. We have lived in Longridge for 4 years we know of no issue. Is it a good idea to get in touch with our local Authority to obtain confirmation that there is no issue.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing lawyer currently acting for you. What do they say? You should enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same illness)
I am purchasing a new build house in Longridge with a mortgage from Barclays Direct. The developers refused to move on the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of fixtures and fittings instead. The estate agent advised me not inform my solicitor about the deal as it may impact my mortgage with the lender. 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.
I decided to have a survey completed on a house in Longridge ahead of retaining conveyancers. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold aspect to the house. My surveyor has said that some mortgage companies will refuse to grant a loan on a flying freehold property.
It varies from the lender to lender. Lloyds has different requirements from Nationwide. If you contact us we can investigate further with the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Longridge. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Longridge to see if the conveyancing costs will increase in light of this.
I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of apartments in Longridge both have about fifty years left on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?
There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Longridge is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the salability of the premises. The majority of buyers and banks, leases with less than 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Longridge conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease. They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.
I am the registered owner of a 2 bed flat in Longridge, conveyancing formalities finalised 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? Equivalent properties in Longridge with an extended lease are worth £176,000. The ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2105
With only 80 years unexpired the likely cost is going 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 advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.