My husband and I are planning to buy a flat in Tintern and have instructed a Tintern conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our property lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Norwich and Peterborough Building Society have this evening contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Tintern solicitor is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?
Where you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is conventional for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Tintern solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
As someone not used to the Tintern conveyancing process what is your top tip you can impart for the legal transfer of property in Tintern
Not many law firms or advisers will tell you this but conveyancing in Tintern and elsewhere in Monmouthshire is often a confrontational process. In other words, when it comes to conveyancing there exists plenty of opportunity for friction between you and others involved in the legal transfer of property. E.g., the seller, selling agent and even potentially a bank. Selecting a law firm for your conveyancing in Tintern is a critical decision as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the SOLE party in the process whose role it is to act in your legal interests and to protect you.
There is a worrying emergence in the "blame" culture- someone must be at fault for the process taking so long. We recommend that you your first instinct should be to trust your conveyancer ahead of the other parties in the conveyancing process.
Just had an offer accepted on a new build flat in Tintern. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build conveyancing.
Set out below is a sample of a few leasehold new build enquiries that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Tintern
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Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? Please confirm the Lease plans are surveyor prepared. Investor purchasers must be able to freely grant unsecured tenancies at market rents without requiring any consents. Please supply a car parking plan.
Due to the encouragement of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Tintern in advance of instructing conveyancers. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. The surveyor has said that some lenders tend refuse to give a mortgage on this type of house.
It varies from the lender to lender. Santander has different requirements for example to Nationwide. If you call us we can investigate further with the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Tintern. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
Back In 2004, I bought a leasehold flat in Tintern. Conveyancing and Halifax mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in Tintern who previously acted has now retired. What should I do?
The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Tintern conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I am the registered owner of a basement flat in Tintern, conveyancing having been completed July 2001. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Tintern with a long lease are worth £185,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 invoiced annually. The lease runs out on 21st October 2086
With only 60 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £20,000 and £23,000 plus legals.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.
I pay a service charge for my flat in Tintern. As a result of poor financial planning I fell into arrears with remittance. The freeholders agreed a settlement plan but there remains approximately £1750 due to be paid.
I now wish to sell and I am worried this may threaten to derail the sale if I have to discharge the arrears now. Do I have to settle before - is this viable?
The lawyer undertaking your Tintern sale will hopefully be able to negotiate with the management company, and agree with them whether or not they would accept payment out of the completion monies. Here is an example of why it might be good to instruct a solicitor in Tintern as they are likely to enjoy an open line of communication with the parties.