My husband and I are hoping to purchase a home in Trefnant and are in fact using a Trefnant conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our solicitor has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with a view to exchanging next week. Birmingham Midshires have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Trefnant lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' solicitors to also represent the purchaser's lender. 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 property lawyer 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 are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Trefnant solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
The sellers of the home we are looking to purchase hired a conveyancing firm in Trefnant who has insisted on a preliminary contract with a down payment of 5k. Are such agreements sensible?
This kind of preliminary agreement is not the norm in Trefnant, conveyancers are not keen on them as they divert attention from the main conveyancing focus and if you end up having your deposit forfeited then the solicitor at best left with an upset client and at worst a litigious one. In addition, there is no certainty that just because the owner has executed a lock out agreement they will sell to you. They may breach the agreement if they are offered a large enough incentive to do so because an aggrieved claimant with the benefit of a exclusivitycontract will still have to establish consequential losses from the breach and these may not equate the extra amount that your vendor may gain by breaking the agreement, however morally reprehensible it undoubtedly is.
Should my lawyer be raising questions regarding flooding during the conveyancing in Trefnant.
The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for conveyancers dealing with homes in Trefnant. There are those who buy a house in Trefnant, fully aware that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, leaving to one side the physical damage, if a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, adequate building insurance, or dispose of the premises. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.
Solicitors are not qualified to offer advice on flood risk, however there are a number of checks that may be undertaken by the buyer or by their conveyancers which should figure out the risks in Trefnant. The standard property information forms given to a buyer’s solicitor (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) contains a standard question of the vendor to find out whether the property has historically flooded. If flooding has previously occurred which is not notified by the owner, then a purchaser could commence a legal claim for losses as a result of such an incorrect answer. The purchaser’s lawyers should also conduct an enviro search. This should disclose if there is any known flood risk. If so, further investigations will need to be conducted.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I put an offer in a fortnight ago in what should have been a quick, no chain conveyancing. Trefnant is where the house is located. Can you offer any guidance?
Flying freeholds in Trefnant are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Trefnant you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds diligently. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Trefnant may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.
What tools are available to locate a Trefnant law firm on the Coventry Building Society conveyancing panel? I am a keen cyclist and am prepared to travel upto 10kilometers to meet the conveyancer.
You can use the facility on this page. Please choose the mortgage company and your location and you will see a number of Trefnant conveyancing lawyers based on proximity. We have listed some Trefnant conveyancing firms at the bottom of this page and you can contact them to see if they are on the Coventry Building Society approved list
Back In 2009, I bought a leasehold house in Trefnant. Conveyancing and Bank of Ireland mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Trefnant who previously acted has long since retired. Do I pay?
The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Trefnant conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.
Leasehold Conveyancing in Trefnant - Sample of Queries Prior to buying
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How much is the annual service fee and ground rent? Are any of leasehold owners in dispute over their service charge liability? How is the lease structured?