My partner and I are purchasing a newly built flat in Minera and my lawyer is advising me that she has to the bank to disclose incentives from the seller. I am under pressure to sign contracts and my preference is not to delay deal. is my lawyer playing by the book?
You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your solicitor. A precondition to being on a mortgage company 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.
My wife and I have a renovated Georgian house in Minera. Conveyancing lawyer represented me and Halifax. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and there are two entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold with the exact same property. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?
You need to review the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Minera and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they sell they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with buyers. You can also question the position with your conveyancing solicitor who conducted the work.
I'm purchasing a new build house in Minera with a mortgage from HSBC Bank. The developers refused to reduce the price so I negotiated £7000 of fixtures and fittings instead. The house builders rep suggested that I not inform my conveyancer about this side-deal as it would jeopardize my loan with HSBC Bank. Is this normal?.
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 have been sourcing a conveyancing solicitor in Minera for my purchase. Is it possible to see a firm’s record with the profession’s regulator?
You can review documented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) determinations arising from investigations commenced on or after 1 January 2008. Go to Check a solicitor's record. For information Pre 2008, or to check a solicitors history, telephone 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 any week day save for Tuesday when lines open at 9.30am. For callers outside the UK, call +44 (0)121 329 6800. The SRA may recorded telephone calls for training reasons.
I am looking at a couple of maisonettes in Minera which have approximately fifty years left on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?
A lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena.
I purchased a garden flat in Minera, conveyancing formalities finalised 3 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Minera with over 90 years remaining are worth £227,000. The ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease terminates on 21st October 2097
With 71 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £9,500 and £11,000 plus costs.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.
I happen to be an executor of my recently deceased mother’s Will, with a bungalow in Minera which will be sold. The bungalow has never been registered at HMLR and I'm told that many estate agents will insist that it is completed before they will proceed. What's the procedure for this?
In the circumstances you refer to it seems prudent to apply to register in the names of the personal representative(s) as named in the probate and in their capacity as PRs. HMLR’s online guidance explains how to register for the first time and what is required re the deeds and forms. You would need to include and official copy of the probate as well and complete the form FR1 to refer to the PRs as the applicant.