Our son is about to exchange on a house that has just been built in Southwark with a mortgage from Barclays. His solicitor has advised him of a delay in receiving the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. Who needs to receive the form?
The form is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Barclays conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Barclays conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
It is a dozen years since I acquired my property in Southwark. Conveyancing lawyers have just been instructed on the sale but I can't track down the title documents. Is this a problem?
You need not be too concerned. First the deeds may be retained by your mortgage company or they could be in the possession of the lawyers who oversaw your purchase. Secondly the chances are that the land will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to prove you own the property by your conveyancing solicitors obtaining up to date copy of the land registers. Most conveyancing in Southwark relates to registered property but in the rare situation where your property is not registered it is more of a problem but is resolvable.
I'm the only recipient of my late father’s estate and I have everything in my name alone, including the house in Southwark. The Southwark property was put into my name in October. I plan to dispose of the property. I do know about the Mortgage Lenders six month 'rule', meaning my proprietorship could be regarded the same way as if I'd bought the property in October. Is the property unsalable for six months?
The CML handbook instructs solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you may be impacted by that. How sensible a view banks take of it, depend on the lender as this requirement principally exists to identify subsales or the quick reselling of property.
When it comes to mortgage companies such as Barclays, do Southwark property lawyers face an annual charge to be on the conveyancing panel?
We are unaware of any bank fees to be on their panel, although some do levy an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.
I am currently in the process of buying my council flat in Southwark. I have a mortgage agreed with Coventry BS. Conveyancing is not something I have any knowledge of. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should have one. Any advice?
It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with Coventry BS, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel.
Do commercial conveyancing searches disclose planned roadworks that may affect a commercial premises in Southwark?
Many commercial conveyancing solicitors in Southwark will execute 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 Southwark. The search result 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 Southwark.
For each commercial conveyancing transaction in Southwark it is critical to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. Failure to identify developments where adoption procedures have not been dealt with adequately may cause delays to Southwark commercial conveyancing deals as well as present a risk to future plans for the site. These searches are not carried out for domestic conveyancing in Southwark.
How do I use your search app to locate a conveyancing lawyer in Southwark on the approved list for my lender?
First pick a mortgage company such as Santander, Barnsley Building Society or Godiva Mortgages Ltd then type in your preferred area such as Southwark. Conveyancing practices in Southwark and across England and Wales should be shown.
Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Southwark. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the unexpired term of the lease.
If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Southwark - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title. For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.
I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without getting anywhere. Can I apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Southwark conveyancing firm to act on my behalf?
You certainly can. We can put you in touch with a Southwark conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Southwark flat is 1-41 Royal Tower Lodge 40 Cartwright Street in April 2013. the tribunal adding the agreed value of capitalised ground rents and the reversion the price to be paid for the freehold was £1,187,000 This case related to 41 flats. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 107 years.