We are soon to exchange on the purchase of a house in Wealdstone but as a result of damage from the recent storms I have was able negotiate reparation from the owner in the sum of three thousand pounds in the form of a reduction in the price. This was going to be dealt with as part of amending the contract however Co-operative are not allowing this. Should they have been approached?
The conveyancer being on a Co-operative approved list is obliged to advise Co-operative of any amendments to the sale price. If you were to refuse your conveyancer to disclose the reduction to Co-operative then they would have to discontinue acting for you. In addition, Co-operative and you would have to appoint a new solicitor for your conveyancing in Wealdstone.
This question may be naive but I am wet behind the ears as a 1st time purchaser of a two bedroom flat in Wealdstone. Do I collect the keys to the property on the completion date from my solicitor? If this is the case, I will use a High Street conveyancing solicitor in Wealdstone?
There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Conveyancing lawyers for you will electronically transfer the completion advance to the seller's solicitors, and once they have received this, you should be able to collect the keys from the Estate Agents and start moving into the property. This tends to happen between 1 and 3pm.
My wife and I are in the throws of viewing houses in Wealdstone and I am about to put in an offer. Is it premature to have a solicitor in place? I intend to finance via a mortgage with HSBC.
You should start obtaining conveyancing estimates from solicitors ASAP. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their details on to the EA. As you are getting a mortgage with HSBC, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the HSBC conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.
I can not fathom if my lender requires a lease extension. I have telephoned my Wealdstone building society branch on various occasions and was informed it wasn't an issue and they will lend. My Wealdstone conveyancing solicitor - who is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel- called and was told they refuse to lend in accordance with their specific requirements. Who do I believe?
As long as the conveyancing practitioner is on the lender approved list, she or he must comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook conditions for the lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the bank will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the lender to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years remaining.
I bought my apartment on 9 May and the transaction details are still not registered. Need I be worried? My conveyancing solicitor in Wealdstone said it would be registered inside ten days. Are properties in Wealdstone uniquely lengthy to register?
As far as conveyancing in Wealdstone registration is no faster or slower than anywhere else in the country. Rather than based on location, timescales can differ depending on the party submitting the application, whether there are errors and if the Land registry must send notices to any other persons or bodies. Currently in the region of 80% of submission are fully addressed in less than three weeks but occasionally there can be extensive hold-ups. Historically registration occurs after the new owner is living at the premises therefore registration formalities is not typically an essential issue yet if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your solicitor should communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for the application to be prioritised.
I was recommended by a few property agents in Wealdstone to choose a conveyancer on your site. Is there a financial upside for Estate Agents to promote your site over a competitor’s?
We refuse to give any referral fee for directing people to this site. We found it would be just too difficult to pay a commission because home movers will think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I getting any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.
What are your top tips when it comes to finding a Wealdstone conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?
If you are instructing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Wealdstone conveyancing firm) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with two or three firms including non Wealdstone conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. The following questions might be useful:
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Can they put you in touch with clients in Wealdstone who can give a testimonial? How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?
Having spent months of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Wealdstone. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?
in cases where there is a absentee landlord or if there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to judgment on the price payable.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Wealdstone residence is 139/139A Masons Avenue in February 2010. this was a case with an absentee freeholder. As a result the leaseholders applied to Willesden County Court for an order dispensing with the giving of a notice of claim.14th October 2009 District Judge Brar granted a vesting order and the court directed that the matter should be transferred to this tribunal to determine the freehold premium. The tribunal concluded on a figure of £13,000 for the freehold interest This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 74 years.
Why do Wealdstone conveyancing charges differ for leasehold and freehold properties?
If purchasing a leasehold property there is more work involved purely due to the fact that usually there are further parties involved in the form of the freeholder and/or Management Agents. As part of a lawyers enquiries they will check that all ground rent and service charges are paid up to date amongst other general leasehold matters. For this reason, the Sellers lawyers usually have to refer to the freeholder or Managing Agent for their replies to our questions. This may be time consuming and beyond the lawyers control