I am not well enough to travel far from Walderslade. What is the rationale as to why all Walderslade solicitors aren't automatically on all lender panels?
Banks normally impose restrictions on either the nature or volume of conveyancing firms on their panel. A common example of such restriction(s) being that the firm is required to have at least two partners. In addition to restricting the structure of firm, some have decided to limit the number of practices they allow to act for them. You should note that lenders have no responsibility for the standard of advice supplied by any Walderslade conveyancer on their approved list. Increases in mortgage fraud was the primary trigger for the rationalisation of conveyancing panels in the last decade notwithstanding that there are contrary points of view concerning whether solicitors sat at the center of that fraud. Statistics from HMLR reveal that thousands of law practices only transact a couple of conveyances a year. Those vindicating conveyancing panel pruning question why conveyancing firms deserve any entitlement to remain on a conveyancing panel when clearly property law is not their primary expertise?
We have rather pushy sellers who has recommended a preliminary contract with a payment two thousand pounds. Are such agreements sensible?
This kind of preliminary agreement is unusual in Walderslade, conveyancers are not keen on them as they detract from the primary objective, namely conveyancing and if you end up losing your deposit then the solicitor at best left with an upset client and at worst a litigious one. In addition, there is no guarantee that just because the proprietor has entered into a lock out contract they will sell to you. They may be in contravention of the contract if they are offered a big enough financial inducement to do so because a wronged purchaser with the benefit of a lockout agreement will still have to establish consequential losses from the breach and these may not compare to the financial upside that your vendor may obtain by breaking the contract, however morally reprehensible it undoubtedly is.
As a novice what is the most important number one tip you can impart about purchase conveyancing in Walderslade?
Not many law firms or advisers will tell you this but conveyancing in Walderslade and elsewhere in Kent is often a confrontational process. In other words, when it comes to conveyancing there is lots of opportunity for conflict between you and others involved in the legal transfer of property. E.g., the seller, estate agent and sometimes a bank. Selecting a law firm for your conveyancing in Walderslade an important selection as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the SOLE party in the transaction whose role it is to protect your legal interests and to protect you.
Sometimes a third party with a vested interest will try and persuade you that you should follow their advice. As an example, the estate agent may claim to be assisting by claiming that your solicitor is wrong. Or your mortgage broker may advise you to do take action that is against your conveyancers recommendation. You should always trust your lawyer above all other parties when it comes to the legal transfer of property.
My grandfather passed away 10 months ago and as sole heir and executor I was left the house in Walderslade. The house had a relatively small loan left on it of around £8000. I want to have the title changed into my name whilst I re-mortgage to Bank of Ireland, pay off the mortgage. Is this possible?
If you intend to refinance then Bank of Ireland will insist on your using a conveyancer on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel. Here is link to the Land Registry online guidance around what to do when a property owner dies. This will help you to understand the registration process behind changing the details re the registered title. in your case it would appear that you are effectively purchasing the property from the estate. Your Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel solicitor pays the new mortgage money into the estate, the estate pays off the old mortgage, the charge is released and you become the owner and the Bank of Ireland mortgage is registered as a charge at the Land Registry.
I have paid off my mortgage with Nottingham. I assume I don't need a Walderslade conveyancing practitioner on the Nottingham panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?
If you have finished paying off your Nottingham 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 Nottingham mortgage from the register. Nottingham, 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 Nottingham has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Nottingham has instructed the Land Registry to do so
I am due to exchange contracts on my flat. I had a double glazing fitted in June 2010, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's mortgage company, Clydesdale are being a right pain. The Walderslade solicitor who is on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel is happy to accept ‘lack of building regulation’ insurance but Clydesdale are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do Clydesdale have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that Clydesdale have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Clydesdale may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
I've read lots of mortgage guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Walderslade solicitor - who is on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. is that correct?
Virgin Money will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Virgin Money will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Walderslade surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Walderslade what are the most common lease problems?
Leasehold conveyancing in Walderslade is not unique. All leases are drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are not included. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:
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Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the building Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
You will have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Lloyds TSB Bank, Leeds Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to pull out.
I am the registered owner of a split level flat in Walderslade, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Walderslade with an extended lease are worth £265,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease ends on 21st October 2101
With only 76 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £8,600 and £9,800 as well as costs.
The suggested premium range that we have given is 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 this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.