My partner and I swapping mortgage lender for our penthouse in Richmond with Nottingham. We have a son 19 who lives at home. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the flat is repossessed. I have two concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Nottingham conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we remortgaged 4 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?
On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Nottingham. This is solely used to protect Nottingham if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Nottingham had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
I am in the process of mortgaging my apartment in Richmond, does my lawyer have to be on the Aldermore Solicitor panel?
There is nothing to stop you using your solicitor, but Aldermore will insist on their interests being represented by a firm on their conveyancing panel. There is much more potential for delays and confusion with an additional lawyer added to the mix, and it will undoubtedly be more expensive too.
Will my conveyancer be making enquiries concerning flooding during the conveyancing in Richmond.
The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for solicitors carrying out conveyancing in Richmond. Some people will acquire a house in Richmond, fully aware that at some time, it may be flooded. However, aside from the physical damage, if a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, suitable building insurance, or sell the premises. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.
Lawyers are not qualified to offer advice on flood risk, but there are a number of checks that may be carried out by the buyer or on a buyer’s behalf which can figure out the risks in Richmond. The standard completed inquiry forms sent to a buyer’s conveyancer (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) includes a usual inquiry of the owner to find out whether the property has suffered from flooding. If the premises has been flooded in past and is not notified by the vendor, then a buyer may commence a compensation claim as a result of such an inaccurate response. A buyer’s solicitors should also carry out an enviro report. This should reveal if there is any known flood risk. If so, more detailed inquiries should be initiated.
I used Action Conveyancing a few years past for my conveyancing in Richmond. Now, I need the files but the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?
Do contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Richmond of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously hired, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
Given that I am about to spend £400,000 on a terraced house in Richmond I would like to have a conversation with the lawyer regarding theconveyancing ahead of giving the go ahead to the firm. Is this something that you can arrange?
Absolutely - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you liaising with the lawyer due to be carrying out your property ownership legalities in Richmond.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is unique individual, not a matter number. The solicitors that we put you in touch with believe that the figure you are calculated and presented to you for your conveyancing in Richmond should be the amount on the final invoice that you end up paying.
I am looking at a two flats in Richmond both have about 50 years remaining on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?
There are plenty of short leases in Richmond. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more expensive to extend the lease. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this field.
I am the registered owner of a split level flat in Richmond, conveyancing was carried out 3 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Comparable flats in Richmond with a long lease are worth £201,000. The ground rent is £45 invoiced annually. The lease runs out on 21st October 2090
With just 64 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £15,200 and £17,600 as well as professional fees.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.