My wife and I are refinancing our flat in Surrey with UBS. We have a son 19 who lives with us. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the property is repossessed. I have a couple of questions (1) Is this form unique to the UBS conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we bought 3 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?
First, rest assured that your UBS conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to UBS. This is solely used to protect UBS if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of UBS had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
I am helping my aunt sell her house in Surrey. Will the conveyancing solicitor order an energy assessment or do I organise this?
Following the abolition of HIPs, energy performance certificates was left as a required component of moving house. An energy assessment should be to hand in advance of the property being marketed. It is not as aspect of the sale process that law firms normally arrange. If you are using a Surrey conveyancing lawyer they may help arrange energy performance certificates due to their relationships with reputable Surrey assessors
We were going to get a DIP from Santander this week so we know how much we could potentially offer as otherwise we are dependent on web based calculators (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do Santander recommend any Surrey solicitors on the Santander conveyancing panel, or is it better to go independently?
You will need to appoint Surrey solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Santander conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and Santander through the process.
I have decided to exercise my right to buy my property in Surrey off the council. I have a mortgage offer with Co-operative. 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 Co-operative, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Co-operative conveyancing panel.
I require expedited conveyancing in Surrey as I am under a deadline to complete inside 3 weeks. A mortgage is not required. Can I avoid the conveyancing searches to save fees and time?
As you are are a mortgage free purchaser you have the choice not to have searches carried out although no lawyer would recommend that you don't. Drawing on years of experience of conveyancing in Surrey the following are instances of issues that can arise and therefore affect future mortgageability: Enforcement Notices, Outstanding Charges, Outstanding Grants, Unadopted Roads,...
I am purchasing a new build house in Surrey with a loan from Bank of Scotland. The sellers refused to reduce the amount so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The sale representative told me not reveal to my conveyancer about the side-deal as it would jeopardize my loan with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.
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.
Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Surrey from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?
- A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Surrey can be bypassed if you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers’ lawyers. If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as over as opposed to unsettled. If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Surrey state that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Where you fail to have the paperwork to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without contacting your conveyancer before hand. If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you are holding the original share document. Obtaining a new share certificate is often a time consuming process and delays many a Surrey home move. Where a reissued share is required, do contact the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this sooner rather than later.
Surrey Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should ask before Purchasing
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It would be sensible to discover if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For instance it is reasonably common in Surrey leases that pets are not permitted in certain buildings in Surrey. If you love the flatin Surrey but your dog is not allowed to move with you then you will be faced difficult compromise. How many years remain on the lease? Is the freehold owned collectively by the tenants?
New build sellers have put forward a conveyancing practitioner and I've sought an estimate from them. They are almost £400 cheaper than my own Surrey lawyer. Should I use them?
Builders often have lists of property lawyers who are quick and who know the seller’s documentation and solicitor. Plenty of developers offer an incentive to use a preferred property lawyer for this reason, any increased fees can be avoided and a developer will not put forward a conveyancing warehouse and run the risk of having the conveyancing stall when they demand an exchange in 28 days. A counter-argument for not opting for the recommended solicitor is that they may be reluctant to fight for your interests for fear of alienating the sellers. Where you have concerns that this may be the case you should remain with your high street Surrey property lawyer.