I am need of leasehold conveyancing for an apartment in a relatively new development (6 years old) in Ruislip Manor. The vast majority the properties have already been sold. Do I need carry out the conveyancing searches as part of conveyancing in Ruislip Manor?
You would be opening yourself up to an unnecessary risk in refusing to carrying out Ruislip Manor conveyancing searches. Without searches you have no clarity over flooding, environmental etc which may mean you walk away due to potential problems down the line. If you are buying mortgage free there is no legal requirement to have them, but we would absolutely advise in the strongest possible terms that your solicitor conducts them. Where timings and expenses are primary concerns you should consider with your solicitor about the options such as contingency insurance available to you
I am the registered owner of a freehold house in Ruislip Manor yet invoiced for rent, why is this and what is this?
It’s unusual for properties in Ruislip Manor and has limited impact for conveyancing in Ruislip Manor 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 establishment of fresh rentcharges post 1977.
Previous rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence in 2037 will be dispensed with completely.
The Ruislip Manor conveyancing lawyers that I appointed last week on my house acquisition in Ruislip Manor have without warning shut down. I only went with them because I needed a lawyer on the Santander conveyancing panel and my preferred Ruislip Manor lawyer was not. I paid them money on account. What should be my next steps?
Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then let them know immediately so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Santander conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers should be in a position to assist.
I'm buying my first flat in Ruislip Manor benefiting from help to buy. The builders would not budge the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of additionals instead. The house builders rep advised me not reveal to my conveyancer about this side-deal as it could jeopardize my mortgage with the bank. Is this normal?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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 on the look out for a flat up to £305k and identified one near me in Ruislip Manor I like with a park and railway links in the vicinity, however it only has 61 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Ruislip Manor suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a short lease?
Should you need a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term may be problematic. Reduce the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the premises for at least 2 years you can ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this.
I am employed by a long established estate agency in Ruislip Manor where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Ruislip Manor conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
As long as 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 buyer need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.
Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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 have given up trying to purchase the freehold in Ruislip Manor. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?
in cases where there is a missing landlord or if there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to make a decision on the price payable.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Ruislip Manor residence is Flat 72 Queens Walk in January 2013. The Tribunals calculated the premium payable to be £22,090. This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired term as at the valuation date was 53.26 years.