My husband and I are purchasing a flat in Albrighton. My Conveyancer has never been on on the bank approved panel. Can I still appoint my Albrighton conveyancing solicitor even though they are excluded from the lender panel?
You will need to appoint a solicitor to complete the formalities when you need a loan to buy your property. The conveyancing practitioner will conduct all the essential investigations on the property, make sure that you will be properly registered as the owner and ensure that all the necessary mortgage paperwork is in order. One could select a Albrighton solicitor of your choice. Nevertheless, if the lawyer selected is not a member of the bank approved list additional costs will arise as separate legal representation will be need by the lender. Conveyancing panel applications may be submitted, so provided your lawyer has not historically sought membership they should take the chance to apply.
Why do I have to pay up front for my conveyancing in Albrighton?
If you are buying a property in Albrighton your solicitor will request that you place them with funds to cover the search fees. Normally this is needed to cover the fees of the conveyancing searches. When the down payment is as part of the total price then this should be asked for immediately in advance of contracts are exchanged. The closing balance that is due should be transferred shortly before completion.
My colleague recommended that where I am buying in Albrighton I should ask my conveyancer to execute a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
This is a search is usually quoted for as part of the standard Albrighton conveyancing searches. It is not a small document of more than thirty pages, listing and setting out important information about Albrighton around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Albrighton Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime statistics, Local Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information regarding Albrighton.
My wife and I purchased a renovated Victorian house in Albrighton. Conveyancing practitioner acted for me and Accord Mortgages Ltd. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and there are two entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold with the exact same property. Is it worth asking Accord Mortgages Ltd to clarify?
You need to assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Albrighton and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they remortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with purchasers. You can also enquire as to the situation with your conveyancing practitioner who conducted the conveyancing.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and found one near me in Albrighton I like with open areas and railway links nearby, however it's only got 61 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Albrighton for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?
If you require a mortgage the shortness of the lease will be problematic. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the property for at least 2 years you may ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer regarding this matter.
I was advised by two or three local estate agents in Albrighton to choose a property lawyer using your seach tool. What’s the financial advantage for Estate Agents to offer your site rather than alternative conveyancing organisations?
We refuse to offer any commission for sending work our way. We thought it would be too underhand to pay a commission because home movers will think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I getting any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.