I am buying a new build flat in Somerset. Can I do my own conveyancing?
Leaving aside the complexities and merits of DIY conveyancing in Somerset you will have to appoint a solicitor on your lender's conveyancing panel to look after their interests. Most people therefore find it easier to let the solicitor act for them and the lender. Furthermore there is minimal cost savings to be made in you doing conveyancing for yourself and another lawyer conducting the conveyancing for the lender. Please feel free to use the search tool to find a lawyer on your lender panel in Somerset.
I am helping my step-mother sell her property in Somerset. Will the conveyancing solicitor arrange an energy performance certificate or it is for the seller to coordinate?
After the demise of HIPs, EPC’s remained a mandatory element of moving house. An energy performance certificate needs to be to hand prior to the property being put on the market. This is not something that conveyancers normally organise. If you are instructing a Somerset conveyancing solicitor they may be willing to arrange energy assessments given their relationships with reputable local energy assessors
We have a mortgage agreed in principle with RBS. Somerset conveyancing lawyers have been instructed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from RBS?
Some lenders take longer than others. Have RBS done the valuation? Have you advised RBS as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the RBS conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.
I have paid off my mortgage with Nationwide. I assume I don't need a Somerset property lawyer on the Nationwide panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.
If you have finished paying off your Nationwide mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Nationwide mortgage from the register. Nationwide, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Nationwide has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Nationwide has instructed the Land Registry to do so
My partner and I are intent on selling our home in Somerset and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a possibility that the property was constructed on contaminated land. Any high street Somerset conveyancer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers used an online conveyancing practice rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Somerset. We have lived in Somerset for many years we know of no issue. Do we get in touch with our local Authority to get confirmation need.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing firm already. Are they able to advise? You should enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same ailment)
Over the last few months I have been searching for a flat up to £195,000 and identified one round the corner in Somerset I like with open areas and station nearby, the downside is that it only has 49 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Somerset suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a lease with such few years left?
Should you require a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term will be an issue. Discount the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you can ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer about this matter.
I need to instruct a conveyancing lawyer in Somerset for my home move. Can I review a solicitor's record with the legal regulator?
You can read documented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) decisions resulting from investigations commenced on or after Jan 2008. Visit Check a solicitor's record. To find information about the period before 1 January 2008, or to check a firm's record, telephone 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 any week day save for Tuesday when lines open at 9.30am. For callers outside the UK, use +44 (0)121 329 6800. The regulator may monitor call for training requirements.
I happen to be an executor of my recently deceased aunt’s Will, with a bungalow in Somerset which is to be marketed. The house has never been registered at HMLR and I'm told that many purchasers will insist that it is in place before they will proceed. What's the mechanism for this?
In the circumstances that you have set out it seems sensible to apply to register in the names of the personal representative(s) as named in the probate and in their capacity as PRs. HMLR’s online guidance explains how to register for the first time and what is required re the deeds and forms. You would need to include and certified copy of the probate as well and complete the form FR1 to refer to the PRs as the applicant.