Can you explain why leasehold purchase conveyancing in Willesden costs more?
In summary, leasehold conveyancing in Willesden and North West London usually warrants more hours of investigation compared to freehold transactions. This includes lease investigation, liaising with the landlord about the service of applicable notices, procuring current service charge and management information, obtaining the freeholder’s consents and reviewing management accounts. The obligations on both the landlord and the tenant in the lease need to be studied by the buyer’s conveyancing team and read from beginning to end – no matter how many different proprietor have owned the lease since it was first granted.
I have a mortgage with Nationwide for my property in Willesden. Conveyancing has been completed some time ago. In the event that I decide to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Nationwide?
Nationwide must be informed of your intention in advance of letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Nationwide’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Nationwide will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Nationwide directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Nationwide conveyancing panel lawyer.
The formalities of my remortgage has taken place for my property in Willesden. Conveyancing was a necessary evil but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. Who do I contact should I wish to lodge a complaint?
All banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Department at head office. We understand that complaints to a lender are sorted out effectively and efficiently. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR with full details of your complaint.
After shopping around on the internet I have found a Willesden conveyancer having checked that they are on the Santander conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
Santander will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Santander 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. Your solicitor will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by your Willesden postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Santander, you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Willesden.
Will my conveyancer be making enquiries about flooding as part of the conveyancing in Willesden.
The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for conveyancers dealing with homes in Willesden. There are those who purchase a house in Willesden, completely expectant that at some time, it may be flooded. However, leaving to one side the physical damage, if a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, suitable building insurance, or dispose of the property. Steps can be carried out as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the buyer.
Solicitors are not qualified to give advice on flood risk, but there are a numerous checks that can be undertaken by the purchaser or on a buyer’s behalf which can figure out the risks in Willesden. The standard property information forms supplied to a purchaser’s lawyer (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) includes a usual inquiry of the seller to find out if the premises has historically flooded. If the property has been flooded in past which is not notified by the owner, then a buyer could issue a legal claim for losses as a result of such an misleading response. The purchaser’s lawyers should also commission an enviro report. This should disclose if there is a recorded flood risk. If so, further investigations should be conducted.
Me and my brother have a semi-detached Edwardian house in Willesden. Conveyancing lawyer represented me and Santander. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw two entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold with the matching property. I thought I was buying a freehold how can I check?
You should assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Willesden and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they sell they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with lenders. You can also question the position with your conveyancing practitioner who conducted the work.
How does conveyancing in Willesden differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build premises in Willesden approach us having been asked by the seller to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is completed. This is because new home sellers in Willesden usually purchase the site, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Willesden or who has acted in the same development.
I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Willesden where we have experienced a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Willesden conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?
As long as 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. This means that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.
Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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 buyer.
I have had difficulty in trying to purchase the freehold in Willesden. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?
Where there is a missing freeholder or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the LVT to calculate the amount due.
An example of a lease Extension decision for a Willesden residence is First Floor Flat 47 Huddlestone Road in December 2010. the Tribunal a valuation of £13,000 for a lease extension having been asked to consider the premium following a vesting order being granted by Willesden County Court On 14th September 2009 This case affected 1 flat. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 71.87 years.