What happens if my lawyer’s firm is removed from the UBS Solicitor panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in March?
First, this is a very rare occurrence. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit at a cost.
My colleague suggested that where I am purchasing in March I should carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?
A search of this type is occasionally included in the estimate for your March conveyancing searches. It is a large document of more than thirty pages, listing and setting out significant information about March around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime details, March Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data concerning March.
Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my home can not be found. The conveyancers who conducted the conveyancing in March 10 years ago are no longer around. What do I do?
Nowadays there are duplicates made of almost everything, and your conveyancer will know precisely where to look for all the suitable paperwork so you may buy or sell your property without a hitch. Where duplicates can’t be found, your conveyancer can put in place insurance or indemnities protecting you against possible claims on your premises.
As co-executor for the estate of my grandmother I am disposing of a residence in Neath but reside in March. My lawyer (based 250 kilometers from meneeds me to execute a statutory declaration prior to the transaction finalising. Could you suggest a conveyancing lawyer in March who can attest this legal document for me?
strictly speaking you should not need to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Normally or notary public or qualified solicitor will suffice regardless of whether they are March based
I am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in March where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local March conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.
An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.
I bought a split level flat in March, conveyancing having been completed May 2008. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding properties in March with an extended lease are worth £255,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease expires on 21st October 2099
With just 73 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £8,600 and £9,800 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.
When it comes to my conveyancing in March should I be paying VAT on the following: (1) Land reg fee on purchase (2) Pre - completion search fee (3) SDLT E submission on purchase (4) Bank TT fee
(1) Land reg fee on purchase - No (2) Pre - completion search fees -No, (such conveyancing searches are HMLR ones and means £4 and possibly £2 bankruptcy per name on your mortgage) (3) SDLT E submission on your purchase - There is no VAT on Stamp Duty. However if the firm is charging a stamp duty e-submission fee as part of their services - some March conveyancers do - that will incur VAT(4) Bank transfer fee - Yes it is for the lawyer's time in submitting the funds this way.