Can you explain why leasehold purchase conveyancing in St Nicholas is more expensive?
The conveyancing costs on a leasehold property in St Nicholas is often more expensive as compared to a freehold property. This is because there is an amount of additional time necessary in corresponding with the freeholder and management company to obtain information about whether the rent and service charges have been paid and whether there are any major works due in the foreseeable future on repairs or maintenance of the building.
We wanted to use a property lawyer in St Nicholas for our home move. Our broker informed us that our mortgage lenders Santander won't deal with them. Why is this not regarded as unduly restrictive?
A lender can require an approved conveyancer act for it. You would be liable to meet the charges for this. Do use our directory service to find a solicitor to conduct conveyancing in St Nicholas on the Santander approved list of solicitors.
I'm at the point of viewing flats in St Nicholas and I am now considering a potential offer. Is it premature to have a solicitor in place? I am planning to take a home loan with Lloyds.
It would be wise to instigate your search sooner rather than later. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their contact information on to the EA. Given that you are getting a mortgage with Lloyds, make sure you remember to check that your lawyer is on the Lloyds conveyancing panel.
Aldermore have agreed my home loan in principle, my offer on a house in St Nicholas has been agreed to, now what?
The property agent will want to be advised as to your conveyancing practitioner's details (ensure that the lawyers are on the bank’s panel). Call up Aldermore or the financial adviser and finish off any relevant paperwork. Aldermore will appoint a valuer who will get in touch with the selling agent or owners to book an appointment. Once conducted (assuming no problems) it takes about a fortnight to get a mortgage offer. Aldermore will send the offer to you and your lawyers. The legal work will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing in St Nicholas.
After what seems like an age I have had an offer on a flat in St Nicholas agreed to, but there is a chain. The owners have offered on on an apartment, but it’s not yet agreed to, and have viewings of other properties booked. I have selected a local conveyancing solicitor in St Nicholas. What do I do now? When should I get the mortgage application with Santander going?
It is usual to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur expenses too early (home loan application is approx £1k, then valuation, St Nicholas conveyancing search costs, etc). The first thing to do is check that your solicitor is on the Santander approved list. Regarding the next steps this very much dictated by the circumstances of your transaction, motivation for the property and on the state of the market. In a hot market many buyers would apply for the mortgage with Santander and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they ask their lawyer to press on with searches.
My wife and I are intent on selling our property in St Nicholas and according to the buyers it appears that there is a possibility that the property was built land that was not decontaminated. A high street St Nicholas lawyer would know this is not the case. It does beg the question why the buyers instructed an online conveyancing firm rather than a conveyancing solicitor in St Nicholas. We have lived in St Nicholas for 4 years we know that this is a non issue. Do we get in touch with our local Authority to get confirmation need.
It would appear that you have a conveyancing solicitor currently acting for you. What do they say? You should check with 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 illness)
I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of apartments in St Nicholas both have about fifty years remaining on the leases. should I be concerned?
There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in St Nicholas is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it adversely affects the salability of the premises. For most purchasers and lenders, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property 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 residence 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 St Nicholas 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 the agreed 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.
St Nicholas Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing
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The answer will be helpful as a) areas can cause problems for the block as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate where services are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the running of the building you will wish to have full disclosure Its a good idea to discover as much as you can regarding the company managing the building as they can either make life much easier or much more difficult. As the owner of a leasehold property you are often in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to day to day matters such as the upkeep of the communal areas. Ask other people whether they are happy with their management. In conclusion, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the managing agents and precisely what you get for your money. It would be sensible to investigate if the the lease contains any adverse restrictions in the lease. For example it is very common in St Nicholas leases that pets are not allowed in certain buildings in St Nicholas. If you love the flatin St Nicholas but your dog is not allowed to make the move with you then you will be presented with a difficult choice.
I have checked your search tool I can't find the lawyer I was hoping to instruct as being on the lender conveyancing panel. My lawyer has said that they are on the mortgage company approved panel. How can I be sure given that they are not listed on your directory?
Not all firms are yet listed on our lender panel search tool which is still relatively new. Law firms are listing on a daily basis and it is probably the case that your lawyer is on the mortgage company conveyancing lawyer and you should probably take them at their word. Please do feel free to suggest that they completing their listing on our site as it would only cost them £1 a month to list themselves as being on the mortgage company solicitor panel.