I was notified recently by my estate agent that my East Acton lawyer is not on the lender Conveyancing panel. How can I be sure if this is correct?
The first thing you need to do is to call your East Acton lawyer directly. You lawyer should inform you what has happened. If they are not on the panel they could put your in touch with solicitors on the conveyancing panel for your mortgage company.
My partner and I have recently acquired a property in East Acton. We have since encountered a number of problems with the house which we believe were missed in the conveyancing searches. What action can we take? What searches should? have been ordered as part of conveyancing in East Acton?
It is not clear from the question as what problems have arisen and if they are specific to conveyancing in East Acton. Conveyancing searches and investigations initiated as part of the legal transfer of property are supposed to help avoid problems. As part of the legal transfer of property, a property owner completes a questionnaire referred to as a SPIF. If the information ends up being incorrect, you may have a misrepresentation claim against the owner for any losses that you have suffered. The survey should have identified any problems with the structure of the property. Assuming a detailed survey was carried out and the issues were not identified, you may have a claim against the surveyor. However, if you did not have a full survey, you may be responsible for fixing any defects that have now been noted. We would always encourage buyers to take every possible step to ensure they are completely aware of the condition of a property before purchase regardless of whether they are buying in East Acton.
It is is a decade since I purchased my home in East Acton. Conveyancing lawyers have now been instructed on the sale but I am unable to find the deeds. Is this a major issue?
Don’t worry too much. Firstly there is a possibility that the deeds will be retained by your mortgage company or they could be archived with the lawyers who acted in the purchase. Secondly in most cases the land will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you are the registered owner by your conveyancing lawyers obtaining up to date copy of the land registers. Most conveyancing in East Acton involves registered property but in the rare situation where your home is unregistered it is more problematic but is resolvable.
I require fast conveyancing in East Acton as I have pressure to exchange contracts inside one month. A home loan is not required. Can I avoid the conveyancing searches to save money and time?
If.Given you are are a cash purchaser you are at liberty not to do searches although no lawyer would suggest that you don't. With lots of history conveyancing in East Acton the following are examples of what can crop up and therefore affect market value: Refused Planning Applications, Overdue Charges, Outstanding Grants, Railway Schemes,...
I have been pointed in your direction by three or four local property agents in East Acton to find a property lawyer using your seach tool. What’s the financial inducement for Estate Agents to offer your lawyers over and above a competitor’s?
We don’t offer any commission for sending work in our direction. We found it would be just too difficult a fee because a client could think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I receiving any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.
I am employed by a long established estate agency in East Acton where we have experienced a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local East Acton conveyancing firms. Please can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can start 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 kick-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 before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.
An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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 purchaser.
Having spent years of correspondence we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in East Acton. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?
Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a East Acton conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a East Acton premises is 49 Long Drive in March 2014. The tribunal concluded that the price payable for the freehold interest in the Property should be £26,491 divided as to £12,546 in respect of the ground floor flat and £13,945 in respect of the first floor flat This case was in relation to 2 flats. The unexpired lease term was 68.47 years.