When will exchange of contracts happen for residential conveyancing in Paddington and am I required to attend the solicitors branch?
If you are round the corner to our conveyancing solicitors in Paddington you are welcome to attend to sign documents. That being said, the lender approved solicitors we work with provide a countrywide conveyancing service and give as equally detailed and professional a job for you when communicating with you digitally. The executing of the purchase agreement is not the point of no return. A signed contract is necessary for the firm to exchange contracts at the appropriate time, which is ordinarily shortly after signing. The procedure is is usually a five minute process, although where an extended "chain" is in the mix, since the process requires the relevant party's solicitor (not necessarily a conveyancing solicitor in Paddington)to be in the office available at the end of the phone to exchange contracts.
A colleague suggested that where I am buying in Paddington I should carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
A search of this type is sometimes quoted for as part of the standard Paddington conveyancing searches. It is a large report of more than thirty pages, listing and setting out important information about Paddington around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Paddington Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime statistics, Paddington Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information regarding Paddington.
Me and my brother own a 4 bedroom Edwardian house in Paddington. Conveyancing practitioner represented me and Skipton Building Society. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw a couple of entries: one for freehold, the second leasehold under the exact same address. I'd like to know for sure, how can I find out??
You should review the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for 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 Paddington and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with mortgage companies. You can also check the position with your conveyancing practitioner who conducted the work.
I opted to have a survey carried out on a property in Paddington ahead of retaining conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold aspect to the property. The surveyor has said that some mortgage companies may not issue a mortgage on this type of house.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Lloyds has different requirements for example to Halifax. Should you wish to call us we can check via the relevant mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Paddington. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
Am I better off to use a Paddington conveyancing practitioner based in the location that I am purchasing? We have a good friend who can deal with the legal formalities but they are based 300kilometers drive away.
The primary upside of using a high street Paddington conveyancing firm is that you can visit the firm to sign documents, present your identification documents and apply pressure on them if necessary. Having local Paddington know how is a plus. That being said it's more important to get someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If if people you trust used your friend and in the main were impressed that must surpass using an unfamiliar Paddington conveyancing lawyer just because they are round the corner.
I am employed by a reputable estate agent office in Paddington where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Paddington conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
Provided that the seller has owned the lease 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 proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.
Alternatively, it may be possible 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 am the registered owner of a first floor flat in Paddington. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the amount due for the purchase of the freehold?
Where there is a absentee landlord or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to make a decision on the premium.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Paddington property is Flats 37 & 39 88/90 Portland Place in December 2010. The Tribunal determined that the premium payable for the lease extensions in respect of these two flats is as follows:- For Flat 37, the sum of £385,230.00 For Flat 39, the sum of £436,780.00 This case was in relation to 2 flats. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 24.02 years.