I am acquiring a property for cash in Swansea. I have been residing for the last twelve years in Swansea. Conveyancing searches are a lot of money. Given that I have knowledge of the area and road intimately should I not bother getting the solicitor to do all the conveyancing searches?
In the absence of a home loan, then the vast majority of the Swansea conveyancing searches are optional. Your lawyer will try and sway you, perhaps strongly, that you should have searches done, but he is duty bound to do this. One thing to bear in mind; if you are intend to dispose of the house one day, it could be of interest to your future buyer what the searches reveal. On occasion houses with functional issues can still throw up unfavourable search results. A competent conveyancing solicitor in Swansea should provide you some helpful guidance here.
Should our lawyer be raising questions regarding flooding during the conveyancing in Swansea.
Flooding is a growing risk for solicitors dealing with homes in Swansea. There are those who buy a house in Swansea, fully aware that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, aside from the physical damage, where a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, satisfactory building insurance, or dispose of the property. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.
Conveyancers are not qualified to offer advice on flood risk, but there are a various searches that may be initiated by the purchaser or by their solicitors which can give them a better understanding of the risks in Swansea. The standard property information forms sent to a purchaser’s solicitor (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) contains a usual question of the seller to discover if the premises has ever been flooded. If the property has been flooded in past and is not revealed by the vendor, then a buyer could issue a legal claim for losses stemming from an misleading answer. A buyer’s conveyancers should also conduct an enviro report. This should disclose whether there is any known flood risk. If so, additional inquiries will need to be carried out.
How does conveyancing in Swansea differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build property in Swansea approach us having been asked by the seller to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is ready to move into. This is because house builders in Swansea usually acquire the site, 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 used to new build conveyancing in Swansea or who has acted in the same development.
I am looking for a flat up to £245,000 and found one close by in Swansea I like with open areas and transport links nearby, however it's only got 52 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Swansea for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a lease with such few years left?
If you require a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term may be an issue. Discount the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for at least 2 years you could ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer concerning this.
I've recently bought a leasehold house in Swansea. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?
In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.
If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).
Leasehold Conveyancing in Swansea - Sample of Questions you should ask before Purchasing
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You should be aware that where the lease has less than eighty years it will impact the marketability of the property. It is worth checking with your bank that they are content with the length of the lease. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will probably have to extend the lease at some point and it is worth discovering what this will be. For most Swansealease extensions you will need to own the residence for a couple of years in order to be legally able to extend the lease. The majority of Swansea leasehold properties will incur a service bill for maintenance of the building set by the landlord. If you buy the flat you will have to pay this liability, usually in instalments accross the year. This can be anything from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built blocks. There will also be a rentcharge to be met yearly, ordinarily this is not a significant figure, say about £25-£75 but you need to check as on occasion it could be prohibitively expensive. How is the lease structured?
My solicitors in Swansea have advised me that no longer have my conveyancing file. To assist with my purchase I took out a mortgage with the lender. Is it case that being on the bank conveyancing panel they need to have retained the file for a prescribed period?
It very much depends from lender to lender but many of the Terms and Conditions of Conveyancing Panel Appointment require the file to be held for a period of 6 years. That being said we have not seen a copy of the bank Conveyancing Panel Terms. It might be worth you contacting the bank directly.