My husband and I are looking to buy a house in Shenley Brook End and have instructed a Shenley Brook End conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. The Royal Bank of Scotland have this afternoon contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Shenley Brook End lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?
If you are buying a property needing a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for 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 bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Shenley Brook End lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
Please explain the implications if my lawyer’s firm is removed from the Principality Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Shenley Brook End?
First, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit for a fee.
Should commercial conveyancing searches reveal impending roadworks that may impact a commercial site in Shenley Brook End?
Many commercial conveyancing solicitors in Shenley Brook End will carry out a SiteSolutions Highways report as it dramatically cuts the time that conveyancers invest in researching accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Shenley Brook End. The report sets out definitive data on the adoption status of roads, footpaths and verges, as well as the implication of traffic schemes and the rights of way surrounding a commercial development sites in Shenley Brook End.
For every commercial conveyancing transaction in Shenley Brook End it is critical to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. The absence of identifying developments where adoption procedures have not been addressed adequately can cause delays to Shenley Brook End commercial conveyancing transactions as well as pose a risk to future plans for the site. These searches are not carried out for residential conveyancing in Shenley Brook End.
I am purchasing a new build house in Shenley Brook End with the aid of help to buy. The developers would not reduce the price so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The property agent suggested that I not inform my solicitor about this side-deal as it would put at risk 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.
Am I better off to choose a Shenley Brook End conveyancing lawyer in close proximity to the house I am hoping to buy? An old friend can handle the conveyancing but her office is 200kilometers drive away.
The benefit of a local Shenley Brook End conveyancing practice is that you can visit the firm to sign documents, present your identification documents and pester them where appropriate. They will also have local knowledge which is a plus. That being said it's more important to get someone that will do a good and efficient job. If if people you trust used your friend and on the whole were impressed that should surpass using an unfamiliar Shenley Brook End conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being local.
Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Shenley Brook End from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?
- A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Shenley Brook End can be reduced where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers’ representatives. If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate can be a lengthy formality and frustrates many a Shenley Brook End conveyancing deal. If a duplicate share certificate is required, do contact the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this sooner rather than later. A minority of Shenley Brook End leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors. You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this by asking your solicitors. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is under 75 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.
I inherited a ground floor flat in Shenley Brook End, conveyancing having been completed 5 years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Corresponding properties in Shenley Brook End with over 90 years remaining are worth £165,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2102
With just 77 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £7,600 and £8,800 as well as professional fees.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.