We are intending to acquire a 3 bedroom flat in Swanage with a mortgage. We have a Swanage lawyer, however the mortgage company advise he's not on their "panel". It appears that we have little choice but to instruct one of the bank panel conveyancing practices or retain our Swanage property lawyer as well as pay for one of their panel lawyers to represent them. This seems very unfair; can we not insist that the mortgage company use our Swanage property lawyer ?
No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your Swanage conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
I have been told that property searches are the number one cause of stalling in Swanage house deals. Is that correct?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) released conclusions of research by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not figure within the top 10 causes of delays in the conveyancing process. Local searches are unlikely to be the root cause of slowing down conveyancing in Swanage.
How does conveyancing in Swanage differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build residence in Swanage approach us having been asked by the builder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is completed. This is because new home sellers in Swanage 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 conveyancing solicitors 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 Swanage or who has acted in the same development.
I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £235,500 and found one round the corner in Swanage I like with a park and railway links in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 51 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Swanage suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a lease with such few years left?
If you need a mortgage that many years will likely be an issue. Discount the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the property for at least 2 years you could ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this.
Is it possible to change conveyancer as I need to choose a firm on the Alliance & Leicester conveyancing list. I hired a family conveyancing solicitor in Swanage five minutes from me but she is not approved by Alliance & Leicester
It would be our pleasure to assist you select a conveyancing solicitor in Swanage on the Alliance & Leicester panel. Please note that the conveyancers that we on the directory do not pay us commission if you instruct them and are fully regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority who regulate all conveyancing solicitors in Swanage. Using search facility on this page, you can compare and instruct different solicitors and conveyancers both nationally and in Swanage.
I own a leasehold house in Swanage. Conveyancing and National Westminster Bank mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Swanage who previously acted has long since retired. What should I do?
The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to instruct a Swanage conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.
Swanage Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should consider before Purchasing
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Can you inform me if there are any major works in the near future that could increase the maintenance charges? Where a Swanage lease has less than eighty years it will impact the value of the property. Check with your mortgage company that they are willing to go ahead with the loan given the lease term. A short lease means that you will probably require a lease extension sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering what this will be. For most Swanagelease extensions you would need to own the premises for two years in order to be legally able to carry out a lease extension. Who manages the building?