What does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in West Yorkshire? Why is this being asked of me?
You are right in these requests have nothing to do with conveyancing in West Yorkshire. However these days you will not be able to complete any conveyancing process if you have not providing proof of your identity. Ordinarily this takes the form of a either your passport or driving licence as well as a utility bill. Please note that if you are supplying your driving licence as proof of identification it must be both the paper element as well as the photo card part, one is not sufficient in the absence of the other.
Proof of your source of money is necessary under Money Laundering Regulations. You should not be offended when you are asked to produce this as your conveyancing solicitor must retain this information on record. Your West Yorkshire conveyancing practitioner will require evidence of proof of funds before they are able to accept any funds from you into their client account and they may also ask further questions concerning the source of funds.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up as part of conveyancing in West Yorkshire?
Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in West Yorkshire. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
Just had an offer accepted on a new build flat in West Yorkshire. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build conveyancing.
Set out below is a sample of a selection of leasehold new build questions that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in West Yorkshire
-
Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? Please supply a car parking plan. Please supply evidence that the form of Lease proposed has been approved by the Land Registry. Investor purchasers must be able to freely grant unsecured tenancies at market rents without requiring any consents. Where service of notices and proceedings can be at the property demised please confirm that this can be amended to include simultaneous services at the Lessees’ solicitors’ offices where the Lessee from time to time is not resident in the UK - such solicitors may be varied by notice in writing to the Landlord from time to time but otherwise will be as previously specified.
I am looking for a flat up to £305k and identified one close by in West Yorkshire I like with open areas and transport links in the vicinity, however it only has 61 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in West Yorkshire in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?
If you need a mortgage the shortness of the lease may be problematic. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you could ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer about this.
I am employed by a busy estate agent office in West Yorkshire where we see a few leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local West Yorkshire conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?
Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.
Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.
I own a garden flat in West Yorkshire, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Similar flats in West Yorkshire with over 90 years remaining are worth £260,000. The ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2100
You have 74 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £8,600 and £9,800 plus legals.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional 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 placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.
My solicitors in West Yorkshire have advised me that they can not locate my conveyancing file. At the time of my purchase I took out a mortgage with the bank. Is it case that being on the lender conveyancing panel they need to have retained the file for a prescribed period?
It very much depends from lender to lender but many of the Terms and Conditions of Conveyancing Panel Appointment require the file to be held for a period of 6 years. That being said we have not seen a copy of the mortgage company Conveyancing Panel Terms. It might be worth you contacting the bank directly.