Is the fact that my conveyancer in Southgate is not on my bank's solicitor panel that there is a problem with the quality of the firm’s conveyancing?
It would not be wise to jump to that conclusion. There are all sorts of perfectly reasonable explanations. Just recently a report by the solicitors regulator indicated 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The top 5 reasons are as follows: (1) lack of transactions (2) the solicitor is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. If you are concerned you should simply call the Southgate conveyancing firm and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for your mortgage company.
Can I use your services to find a Conveyancing solicitor in Southgate even if I’m not buying or selling a house, for example where I intend to acquire an office in Southgate with a loan from Nottingham Building Society?
The service is mainly utilised to select residential conveyancing solicitors in Southgate but we have set out at the bottom of this page some Southgate commercial conveyancing firms. You will need to speak with the firm directly to establish if they are also authorised to represent Nottingham Building Society
My wife and I are purchasing a property in Southgate. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a solicitor? On completion day we have to send money into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our monies?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
Have just purchased a repossessed house at auction in Southgate. Conveyancing is required. What happens now?
Now that you have exchanged you now have to choose a conveyancing solicitor soon as you are facing a pending deadline in which to complete the transaction. All auction property will have a bespoke legal pack. This should include most,if not all of the paperwork that your conveyancer will need. If you have purchased leasehold premises the conveyancing papers may include a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and associated conveyancing documentation specific to leasehold premises. You must give this to the lawyer working for you at the earliest opportunity. Do make sure that that you have the requisite funding in order to complete on the on the contractual date .
I am due to exchange contracts on my flat. I had a double glazing fitted in June 2007, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's mortgage company, Skipton are being a right pain. The Southgate solicitor who is on the Skipton conveyancing panel is recommending indemnity insurance as a solution but Skipton are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do Skipton have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that Skipton have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Skipton may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
Have completed on a a semi-detached house in Southgate , how long should it take for the Land Registry to register the transfer to my name? My Southgate conveyancing solicitor works at snail pace, so I want to check that my name is registered.
There is nothing unique about conveyancing in Southgate registration formalities. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timeframes can vary according to who lodges the application, whether there are errors and if the Land registry must send notices to any other persons or bodies. As of today approximately three quarters of such applications are fully addressed within two weeks but occasionally there can be protracted delays. Historically registration is effected after the buyer is living at the property thus 'speed' is not typically top priority yet if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your solicitor could communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for the application to be prioritised.
Last December I purchased a leasehold flat in Southgate. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?
In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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 ensure 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).
I am the proprietor of a first floor flat in Southgate. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the sum due for a lease extension?
Where there is a missing freeholder or if there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to decide the premium.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Southgate residence is 23 Beaconsfield Road in July 2013. The Tribunals decided that the amount payable was £31,203 for the freehold. This case related to 2 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 70.31 years.
My partner and I soon to exchange buying a house in Southgate but as a result of damage from the recent storms I have agreed reparation from the current proprietors of £2k by way of a reduction in the price. This was going to be dealt with as part of the conveyancing process but the mortgage company will not agree to this. Should they have been involved?
Any conveyancer that is on the mortgage company approved list is obliged to advise the lender of any amendments to the sale amount. If you were to refuse your conveyancing practitioner to disclose the reduction to your mortgage company then they would have no choice but to disinstructing themselves from representing you and the lender.