What does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in South Kensington? What am I being asked for?
Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering rules require solicitors and licensed conveyancers to check the identity of the potential client they are dealing with prior to agreeing to accepting their conveyancing retainer. The Client Care letter that you need to sign will no doubt confirm this. Your lender will also require certain documents to be viewed. Should you refuse to provide ID verification documents, your conveyancer would not be able to act for you.
Is it the case that all South Kensington solicitor firms on the Nottingham conveyancing panel are regulated by the SRA?
As solicitors, in order to be on the Nottingham conveyancing panel they would need to be governed by the SRA. The majority of lenders do permit licenced conveyancers on their panel and in that case the firms would be regulated by the CLC.
We previously selected conveyancers based in South Kensington on the Bank of Ireland solicitor panel. They are now charging me a separate amount for handling the Bank of Ireland mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee set by Bank of Ireland?
Provided it is contained in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your conveyancer may charge a fee for this. The charge is not set by Bank of Ireland but by your South Kensington conveyancing practitioner. Some firms on the Bank of Ireland panel will charge an ‘acting for lender’ fee but some firms include it on their overall fee.
I am selling my apartment. I had a double glazing fitted in October 2007, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My purchaser’s lender, Aldermore are being pedantic. The South Kensington solicitor who is on the Aldermore conveyancing panel is saying indemnity insurance will be fine but Aldermore are requiring a building regulation certificate. Why do Aldermore have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that Aldermore have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Aldermore may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
Various online forums that I have come across warn that are the primary cause of delay in South Kensington house deals. Is this right?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) has noted the determinations of research by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not figure within the most frequent causes of delays during the legal transfer of property. Searches are unlikely to be the root cause of holding up conveyancing in South Kensington.
I am buying a new build house in South Kensington with a mortgage from Coventry Building Society. The developers would not budge the amount so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The sale representative advised me not disclose to my conveyancer about this side-deal as it would impact my loan 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 instruct a South Kensington conveyancing practitioner based in the vicinity that I am hoping to buy? I have an old university friend who can execute the conveyancing however his firm is located approximately 350kilometers away.
The primary upside of using a high street South Kensington conveyancing firm is that you can visit the firm to sign paperwork, present your ID and apply pressure on them where appropriate. Having local South Kensington know how is a plus. However it's more important to get someone that will do a good and efficient job. If if people you trust instructed your friend and they were content that must surpass using an unknown South Kensington conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being round the corner.
I am attracted to a two apartments in South Kensington which have approximately fifty years remaining on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?
There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in South Kensington is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the property. For most buyers and lenders, leases with less than 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a property with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with South Kensington conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease. They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.
I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal decide on such issues? Can you recommend a South Kensington conveyancing firm to help?
You certainly can. We can put you in touch with a South Kensington conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a South Kensington property is Flat 16 21/22 Stanhope Gardens in November 2010. the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal concluded that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993, was £106,975 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term as at the valuation date was 51.93 years.