My wife and I are planning to acquire a home in Pontardawe and are in fact using a Pontardawe conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our conveyancer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with a view to exchanging next week. Virgin Money have this morning contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Pontardawe conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?
If you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is conventional for the purchasers' solicitors to also represent the purchaser's lender. 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 Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your mortgage company 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 are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Pontardawe lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
The Pontardawe conveyancing firm handling our Pontardawe conveyancing has uncovered a difference when comparing the information in the home valuation report and what is revealed within the title deeds. My lawyer informs me that he needs to check that the lender is OK with this discrepancy and is content to go ahead. Is my solicitor’s approach correct?
Your solicitor must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions which do require that your lawyer disclose any incorrect assumptions in the lender’s valuation report and the legal papers. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for both parties.
I purchased a freehold premises in Pontardawe yet pay rent, why is this and what is this?
It’s unusual for properties in Pontardawe and has limited impact for conveyancing in Pontardawe 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 date back hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the creation of new rentcharges from 1977 onwards.
Previous rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a lump sum payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence after 2037 will be extinguished.
I am purchasing a 4 bedroom semi-detached house in Pontardawe. Our aim is to carry out a loft conversion at the house.Will the conveyancing process involve enquiries to ascertain if these works are permitted?
Your conveyancer will review the deeds as conveyancing in Pontardawe will sometimes identify restrictions in the title documents which prevent categories of alterations or need the permission of another owner. Many extensions call for local authority planning permissions and approval under the building regulations. Many locations are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which frequently prevent or affect extensions. You should check these things with a surveyor ahead of any purchase.
Intending to buy a apartment in Pontardawe. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Building Society if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Skipton conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Pontardawe solicitor is on the Skipton conveyancing panel.
After shopping around on the internet I have found a Pontardawe conveyancer having checked that they are on the Aldermore conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
Aldermore will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Aldermore will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Pontardawe surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
I am looking for a ground for flat up to £235,500 and identified one close by in Pontardawe I like with a park and railway links nearby, however it's only got 61 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Pontardawe suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a short lease?
If you require a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be a potential deal breaker. Discount the price by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for at least 2 years you can ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor concerning this matter.
Back In 2000, I bought a leasehold flat in Pontardawe. Conveyancing and Britannia mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Pontardawe who previously acted has now retired. Do I pay?
The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a Pontardawe conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I am the registered owner of a 2 bed flat in Pontardawe, conveyancing having been completed July 2004. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable flats in Pontardawe with an extended lease are worth £190,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease expires on 21st October 2086
With 61 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £18,100 and £20,800 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 are not able to provide a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.