My wife and I are approaching an exchange on a house in Willesden and my parents have sent the 10% deposit to my lawyer. I am now informed that as the deposit has been received from someone other than me my solicitor needs to make a notification to my bank. Apparently, in also acting for the mortgage company he must advise them that the balance of the purchase price is coming from anyone other than me. I disclosed to the mortgage company about my parents' contribution when I applied for the home loan, so is it really appropriate for this now to hold matters up?
Your property lawyer is legally required to clarify with lender to make sure that they are aware that the balance of the purchase price is not from your own resources. The solicitor can only disclose this to your lender if you agree, failing which, your lawyer must cease to continue acting.
Having invested time reviewing mumsnet.com for an affordable solicitor in Willesden, most comment that I should instruct a CQS accredited lawyer. What is CQS?
The Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) provides a recognised quality standard for residential conveyancing practices issued by the Law Society. Membership achievement establishes a level of credibility for member firms with stakeholders (regulators, lenders, insurers and consumers) based upon: * the integrity of the senior responsible officer and other key conveyancing staff * the firm's adherence to good practice management standards * compliance with prudent and efficient conveyancing procedures via the scheme protocol Membership covers many companies who carry out conveyancing in Willesden.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up during conveyancing in Willesden?
Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Willesden. 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…’
Due to the advice of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Willesden before appointing lawyers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold element to the house. Our surveyor advised that some banks will refuse to grant a loan on a flying freehold property.
It varies from the lender to lender. HSBC has different requirements for example to Halifax. Should you wish to call us we can look into this further with the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Willesden. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Willesden especially if they are familiar with such properties in Willesden.
Last October I purchased a leasehold flat in Willesden. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?
Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.
If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).
Having spent years of negotiations we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Willesden. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?
Where there is a missing freeholder or where there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to judgment on 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 was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 71.87 years.
Is planning consent required to split a house into two appartments in Willesden? This has taken place to a house next door to my home in Willesden and was not aware of the conversion until after the works were complete.
Planning Permission yes. Building Regulations yes.