My fiance and I are planning to acquire a house in Brantham and have instructed a Brantham conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with a view to exchanging next week. Lloyds TSB Bank have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Brantham lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
If you are buying a property needing a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' solicitors to also represent the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Brantham solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
What happens if my solicitor is removed from the Nottingham Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Brantham?
First, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit for a fee.
Should my lawyer be raising enquiries about flooding during the conveyancing in Brantham.
The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for conveyancers dealing with homes in Brantham. There are those who buy a house in Brantham, completely aware that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, aside from the physical destruction, where a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, satisfactory insurance cover, or sell the property. Steps can be carried out as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.
Solicitors are not qualified to offer advice on flood risk, but there are a various searches that can be carried out by the purchaser or on a buyer’s behalf which should give them a better understanding of the risks in Brantham. The conventional set of completed inquiry forms supplied to a purchaser’s conveyancer (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) incorporates a usual question of the vendor to determine whether the premises has historically flooded. If flooding has previously occurred which is not disclosed by the seller, then a purchaser could bring a compensation claim stemming from an misleading response. The buyer’s solicitors will also order an environmental search. This will higlight if there is any known flood risk. If so, additional investigations will need to be initiated.
How does conveyancing in Brantham differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build property in Brantham approach us having been asked by the seller to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is completed. This is because house builders in Brantham typically acquire the real estate, 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 property lawyers 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 accustomed to new build conveyancing in Brantham or who has acted in the same development.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a ground for flat up to £245,000 and identified one close by in Brantham I like with amenity areas and transport links nearby, however it only has 61 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Brantham suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a lease with such few years left?
If you need a home loan the shortness of the lease will likely be problematic. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this.
I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Brantham both have about forty five years remaining on the leases. should I be concerned?
A lease is a right to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease shortens the saleability of the lease decreases and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is advisable to extend the lease term. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena.
Brantham Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries before Purchasing
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How much is the ground rent and service charge? It would be wise to discover as much as possible about the managing agents as they can either make living at the property much easier or much more difficult. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you are frequently at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to every day matters like the upkeep of the common parts. Enquire of other people what they think of them. In conclusion, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the appropriate party and specifically what it includes. It would be sensible to find out if there are any onerous restrictions in the lease. By way of example plenty of leases prohibit pets being allowed in certain buildings in Brantham. If you like the apartmentin Brantham yet your dog can’t move with you then you have a very hard choice.