I am nearing exchange of contracts for my maisonette in Nine Elms and the EA has just telephoned to say that the purchasers are appointing a new conveyancer. The reason given is that the bank will only engage with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a leading lender only deal with certain lawyers rather the firm that they want to select to handle their conveyancing in Nine Elms ?
UK lenders have always had panels of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the last few years big names such as Yorkshire Building Society, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for over 25 years.
Lenders justify this action to a rise in fraud as the reason for the pruning – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. Banks tend not to disclose how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Some are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your buyers are not going to have any impact on this.
If you had a top tip for selecting a conveyancing solicitor in Nine Elms what would it be?
Do not opt for the cheapest Nine Elms conveyancing costs illustration. You really do get what you pay for when it comes to conveyancing solicitors. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you know exactly what you’ll have to pay in ahead of the deal.
My stepmother informed me that in buying a property in Nine Elms there could be a number of restrictions preventing external alterations to the property. Is this right?
We are aware of anumerous of properties in Nine Elms which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to carry out external variations. Part of the conveyancing in Nine Elms should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.
The mortgage over my property is with Clydesdale for my property in Nine Elms. Conveyancing has been completed months ago. If I am intending to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Clydesdale?
You must advise Clydesdale before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Clydesdale’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will permit you to let out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Clydesdale directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Clydesdale conveyancing panel firm.
I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I put an offer in a fortnight ago in what was supposed to be a quick, chain free conveyancing. Nine Elms is the location of the property. Is there any guidance you can impart?
Flying freeholds in Nine Elms are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Nine Elms you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds thoroughly. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Nine Elms may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.
Should I use a Nine Elms conveyancing lawyer who is local to the property I am purchasing? An old friend can execute the legal work but her office is 300miles drive away.
The primary upside of using a local Nine Elms conveyancing practice is that you can pop in to execute documents, deliver your identification documents and pester them where appropriate. They will also have local knowledge which is a benefit. However nothing is more important than finding someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If other friends have used your friend and on the whole were happy that must outweigh using an unknown Nine Elms conveyancing lawyer just because they are based in the area.
Harry (my fiance) and I may need to let out our Nine Elms ground floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Nine Elms conveyancing practice in 2004 but they have since shut and we did not think at the time seek any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?
Your lease dictates relations between the freeholder and you the flat owner; in particular, it will indicate if subletting is banned, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no specific ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Nine Elms do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the property. Instead, there is usually simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a copy of the tenancy agreement.
We have reached the end of our tether in trying to purchase the freehold in Nine Elms. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?
Where there is a absentee freeholder or if there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to judgment on the price.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Nine Elms flat is 150A Albert Palace Mansions Lurline Gardens in July 2013. The Tribunal determined that the premium payable for the new lease of the subject property was £42,069 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 57.06 years.
Midway through the sale of a leasehold flat in Nine Elms. Conveyancing solicitors are doing their job but we are being charged an extortionate amount from the managing agents. To date we have forked out £250 for a leasehold management pack and then another £117.20 for additional queries raised by the buyers conveyancer.
Your lawyer will not have any impact over the level of the charges for this information but the typical costs for the information for Nine Elms leasehold property is £380. For Nine Elms conveyancing transactions it is standard for the seller to cover the charges. The landlord or their agents are not duty bound to address these questions although many will be content to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires capped fees for administrative tasks. There is no prescriptive time frame by which they are required to provide answers.