I'm in the process of transferring my existing standard mortgage to a BTL Nottingham Building Society mortgage. The bank has said that I require a solicitor as part of the process. I had a chat my former Torfaen conveyancing solicitor who who completed the conveyancing when I originally purchased the property. The pricing estimate they've given of £575 plus disbursements has surprised me as its a remortgage than a sale or purchase.
The estimate does seem a little overpriced. If you you were to look around you may be able to shave off some of the expense by perhaps a hundred pounds. That being said, if you were pleased with the assistance the firm gave you maylive to regret choosing an an unknown solicitor. If is important to ensure that the firm can represent Nottingham Building Society. You can use our search tool to select a Torfaen conveyancing firm on the Nottingham Building Society approved list of lawyers, which can often include conveyancing solicitors in Torfaen.
I am acquiring a house without a mortgage in Torfaen. I have lived for the last 20 years in Torfaen. Conveyancing searches are exorbitant. Given that I have knowledge of the road and vicinity very well should I not bother getting the solicitor to do all the conveyancing searches?
If you not getting a home loan, then almost all of the Torfaen conveyancing searches are optional. Your solicitor will try and sway you, perhaps strongly, that you should have searches done, but she is duty bound to do this. Do bear in mind; if you are likely to sell the house in the future, it will likely be be of interest to your future buyer what the searches determine. Sometimes premises with no practical issues can still show up unexpected search results. A competent conveyancing solicitor in Torfaen will provide you some sensible guidance concerning this.
Is it the case that all Torfaen CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors are on the Skipton conveyancing panel?
Some major banks and building societies now use the accreditation scheme as the kick off point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. CQS membership however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. Nevertheless,the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitors wishing to join their panels.
I have paid off my mortgage with Virgin Money. I assume I don't need a Torfaen conveyancer on the Virgin Money panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?
If you have finished paying off your Virgin Money mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Virgin Money mortgage from the register. Virgin Money, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Virgin Money has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Virgin Money has instructed the Land Registry to do so
I have decided to exercise my right to buy my property in Torfaen off the council. I have a mortgage agreed with Kent Reliance. 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 Kent Reliance, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel.
Various online forums that I have visited warn that are the main reason for delay in Torfaen house deals. Is that correct?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) published findings of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature within the common causes of delays in the conveyancing process. Local searches are not likely to feature in any slowing down conveyancing in Torfaen.
What does commercial conveyancing in Torfaen cover?
Commercial conveyancing in Torfaen covers a broad array of services, offered by regulated solicitors, relating to business premises. For instance, this area of conveyancing can cover the sale or purchase of freehold business premises or, more commonly, the assignment of existing business tenancies or the drafting of new leasing arrangements. Commercial conveyancing solicitors can also offer advice on the sale of business assets, commercial loans and the termination of tenancies.
Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Torfaen from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?
- A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Torfaen can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers’ lawyers. If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Organising a duplicate share certificate is often a time consuming formality and frustrates many a Torfaen home move. Where a reissued share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity. If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where a dispute is unresolved. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to ongoing. You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your conveyancers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is below 80 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale. A minority of Torfaen leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers.
I own a garden flat in Torfaen, conveyancing was carried out 4 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Similar flats in Torfaen with an extended lease are worth £185,000. The ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease runs out on 21st October 2085
With just 60 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £20,000 and £23,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.