My wife and I are planning to purchase a property in Milnthorpe and have instructed a Milnthorpe conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our solicitor has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Alliance & Leicester have this morning contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Milnthorpe solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
Where you are buying a property needing a mortgage it is standard for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Milnthorpe lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
Our nephew is in the process of securing a newly built flat in Milnthorpe with a mortgage from Virgin Money. His lawyer has said that there is a delay in receiving the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. Who needs to receive the form?
The form is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the valuer when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Virgin Money conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
I am the registered owner of a freehold house in Milnthorpe but still charged rent, why is this and what is this?
It’s unusual for properties in Milnthorpe and has limited impact for conveyancing in Milnthorpe but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.
Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges have existed for hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the generation of new rentcharges post 1977.
Old rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence post 2037 is to be extinguished.
I have Fifty Six years left on my lease and need a lease extension for my apartment in Milnthorpe. Conveyancing solicitors on the Virgin panel can deal with such extensions correct?
Most leasehold conveyancing experts should be able to deal with a lease extension. if you are getting a mortgage then your lender may insist that the lease be extended before competition. Virgin have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook in relation to minimum unexpired lease terms. As of 21/11/2024 the requirements read as follows :
I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £245,000 and found one round the corner in Milnthorpe I like with amenity areas and station in the vicinity, however it only has 61 years on the lease. There is not much else in Milnthorpe in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a short lease?
Should you require a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be an issue. Discount the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you could request that they start the process of the extension and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer about this.
I have just started marketing my ground floor flat in Milnthorpe. Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon, however I have recently received a quarterly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?
Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the invoice as normal given that all rents and service payments will be allotted on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.
Milnthorpe Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before buying
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Does the lease have more than 90 years remaining? Best to be warned if a new roof is being installed or some other significant cost is due shortly to be shared amongst the tenants and could well materially increase the the maintenance charges or require a specific invoice. This question is important as a) areas can cause problems in the building as the common areas may begin to deteriorate where repairs are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the running of the building you will want to know about it