It is 10 years ago since I purchased my property in White City. Conveyancing lawyers have just been retained on the sale but I am unable to locate the deeds. Will this jeopardise the sale?
You need not be too concerned. Firstly there is a possibility that the deeds will be retained by your lender or they could still be with the solicitor who handled the purchase. Secondly in most cases the land will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you own the property by your conveyancing solicitors acquiring up to date copy of the land registers. Almost all conveyancing in White City relates to registered property but in the rare situation where your home is not registered it is more of a problem but is resolvable.
We are getting the release of further funds on our mortgage from Barclays as we wish to conduct renovations to our property in White City. Do we need to select a nearby White City solicitor on the Barclays conveyancing panel to deal with the legals?
Barclays do not ordinarily require firms on their approved list of lawyers to handle such a matter. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Barclays list.
We have agreed to purchase a house in White City. One unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Co-operative have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?
As your lender is Co-operative your lawyer must check the conveyancing requirements outlined in Part 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Co-operative. The CML Handbook stipulates minimum conditions for solar panel roof-space leases, and property lawyers are required to report to Co-operative where a lease does not satisfy these provisions. The conditions relate to the installation of panels on properties in England and Wales and is not limited to White City.
Having digested plenty of house buying guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local White City solicitor - who is on the TSB conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. is that correct?
TSB will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually TSB 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 White City 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.
Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to our house can not be found. The solicitors who handled the conveyancing in White City 10 years ago have long since closed. What are my next steps?
Nowadays there are copies made of almost everything, and your conveyancer should be aware exactly where to look for all the appropriate paperwork so you may purchase or dispose of your property without a hitch. If copies can’t be found, your solicitor can put in place insurance or indemnities against possible claims on the property.
I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold element on a house I put an offer in a fortnight ago in what should have been a simple, no chain conveyancing. White City is the location of the property. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in White City are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside White City you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds very carefully. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in White City may decide 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 property.
Am I better off to use a White City conveyancing practitioner who is local to the property I am buying? We have a good friend who can deal with the legal formalities however her office is approximately 350miles drive away.
The benefit of a high street White City conveyancing firm is that you can drop in to sign paperwork, deliver your identification documents and apply pressure on them where appropriate. Having local White City know how is a benefit. However it's more important to get someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If you know people who used your friend and on the whole were happy that must outweigh using an unknown White City conveyancing lawyer solely due to them being round the corner.
Notwithstanding our best endeavours, we have been unsuccessful in trying to purchase the freehold in White City. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?
Most definitely. We are happy to put you in touch with a White City conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a White City premises is 23 & 23A Collingbourne Road in June 2013. Tribunal was dealing with the assessment of the value of the freehold reversion and determination of the terms of the acquisition pursuant to an Order of District Judge Lightman dated 25 February 2013 vesting the freehold interest in the property in the applicant. The tribunal assessed the price of the freehold (to which any arrears or other sums due to the missing landlord under the leases should be added) at £81,638. This case was in relation to 2 flats. The unexpired lease term was 64.5 years.
What are the frequently found deficiencies that you encounter in leases for White City properties?
Leasehold conveyancing in White City is not unique. All leases are drafted differently and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:
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Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts. Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage
A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Yorkshire Building Society, Barnsley Building Society, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have very detailed 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 provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.