My wife and I are purchasing a newly built duplex in Whittlesey and my solicitor is advising me that she is duty bound to the lender to disclose incentives from the developer. I am on a tight deadline to exchange contracts and I don't want to delay the conveyancing. Is my lawyer right?
You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your conveyancing practitioner. A precondition to being on a bank panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook specifications. The UK Finance Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.
Why do I have to pay up front when it comes to conveyancing in Whittlesey?
If you are buying a property in Whittlesey your solicitor will request that you place them with monies to cover the search fees. This will be the total of the cost of the Local Authority Search. When the down payment is payable against the sale price then this should be required immediately before exchange of contracts. Any further balance that is due will be payable shortly before completion.
Various internet forums that I have visited warn that are the main reason for obstruction in Whittlesey house deals. Is this right?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) has noted the conclusions of research by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature amongst the common causes of hindrances during the legal transfer of property. Local searches are not likely to feature in any delay in conveyancing in Whittlesey.
Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to our home are lost. The solicitors who dealt with the conveyancing in Whittlesey 5 years ago no longer exist. What are my next steps?
Nowadays there are copies made of almost everything, and your solicitor should be aware precisely where to locate all the appropriate paperwork so you can purchase or dispose of your house without any difficulty. If duplicates can’t be found, your conveyancer may be able to put in place insurance or indemnities against future claims on your property.
I'm purchasing my first flat in Whittlesey with a mortgage from Accord Mortgages Ltd. The builders would not reduce the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of fixtures and fittings instead. The estate agent advised me not disclose to my solicitor about this extras as it will jeopardize my loan with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the UK Finance website. UK Finance form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Whittlesey with the intention of expediting the sale process?
- Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Whittlesey can be avoided if you instruct lawyers as soon as you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ representatives. If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Whittlesey state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. If you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor in advance. A minority of Whittlesey leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors. If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic rather than unsettled.
I inherited a studio flat in Whittlesey, conveyancing formalities finalised 6 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Similar properties in Whittlesey with over 90 years remaining are worth £171,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease finishes on 21st October 2105
With only 79 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £8,600 and £9,800 plus professional fees.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.