As someone clueless as to conveyancing in St John's Wood what’s the number one tip you can give me concerning the house moving process in St John's Wood
You may not hear this from too many lawyers but conveyancing in St John's Wood or throughout London is an adversarial process. In other words, when it comes to conveyancing there is lots of room for friction between you and others involved in the legal transfer of property. For example, the seller, selling agent and even potentially your lender. Selecting a lawyer for your conveyancing in St John's Wood is a critical decision as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the ONLY person in the process whose responsibility is to look after your best interests and to protect you.
On occasion a potential adversary will try and convince you that it is in your interests to do things their way. For instance, the selling agent may claim to be assisting by suggesting your lawyer is slow. Or your financial adviser may advise you to do something that is contrary to your lawyers advice. You should always trust your lawyer above all other parties in the home moving process.
I understand that there are debates on Chancel Insurance on online forums. Am I compelled to have this when purchasing a house in St John's Wood? or I am told that there is an ancient law that means some homeowners residing in a parish church boundary may be liable to pay for maintenance towards the chancel in proximity to the church. Is this relevant for conveyancing in St John's Wood?
Unless a prior acquisition of the house completed after 12 October 2013 you could assume that lawyers handling conveyancing in St John's Wood to remain encouraging a chancel search and or chancel repair liability policy.
How does conveyancing in St John's Wood differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in St John's Wood come to us having been asked by the developer to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the residence is built. This is because developers in St John's Wood typically buy the real estate, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are accustomed to new build conveyancing in St John's Wood or who has acted in the same development.
What tools are available to search for a St John's Wood law firm on the The Royal Bank of Scotland conveyancing panel? I have wheels and am willing to travel upto 20miles to meet the solicitor.
Feel free to make use of the facility on this website. Please choose the lender and your location and you will see a number of St John's Wood conveyancing lawyers located nearest you. We have listed some St John's Wood conveyancing firms at the bottom of this page and you can contact them to check if they are on the The Royal Bank of Scotland member panel
My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in St John's Wood. Conveyancing and The Royal Bank of Scotland mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in St John's Wood who acted for me is not around. What should I do?
First contact HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a St John's Wood conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without getting anywhere. Can one make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a St John's Wood conveyancing firm to help?
in cases where there is a absentee landlord or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to calculate the price payable.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a St John's Wood property is Garden Flat 195 Goldhurst Terrace in May 2012. The Tribunal held in accordance with section 48 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 that the premium for the extended lease should be £60,855.00. This case was in relation to 1 flat. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 60.16 years.
My fiance and I have just become aware that one of the partners of the law firm undertaking the purchase conveyancing in St John's Wood is is the brother of the owners that we are purchasing from. Is this acceptable?
On the basis that there is no conflict of interest this is allowable. Where you are needing mortgage finance then the mortgage company may have a say as many lenders have specific instructions on this. For example for Virgin as of 14/11/2025, the requirements read as follows :