Am I correct in assuming that the fact that my solicitor in Balham is not listed on my mortgage company's solicitor panel that there is a problem with the quality of her work?
That would more than likely be an incorrect assumption to make. There are all sorts of perfectly plausible 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. Where you are concerned you should simply call the Balham conveyancing practice and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for your mortgage company.
My fiance and I intend to remortgage our penthouse in Balham with Clydesdale. We have a son 18 who lives with us. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who lives in the flat. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the flat is repossessed. I have a couple of questions (1) Is this form unique to the Clydesdale conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we remortgaged 4 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this giving up his rights to inherit the property?
First, rest assured that your Clydesdale conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Clydesdale. This is solely used to protect Clydesdale if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Clydesdale had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
My property lawyer in Balham is not on the Barnsley Building Society Conveyancing Panel. Is it possible for me to retain my family solicitor even though they are excluded from the Barnsley Building Society list of approved lawyers?
The limited options available to you here include:
- Carry on with your existing Balham lawyers but Barnsley Building Society will need to retain a lawyer on their list of acceptable firms. This will result in additional overall legal fees as well as result in delays.
- Choose a new practitioner to to deal with the purchase, not forgetting to check they are Persuade your lawyer to do everything within their powers to join the Barnsley Building Society conveyancing panel
We are aiming to move home in April. Will my conveyancing solicitor communicate with the removal company on the day of completion. Incidentally, can you put forward a removal company in Balham. Conveyancing solicitor was found prior to coming across this website.
On the afternoon of completion you will need to collect the keys from your property agent however this should only take place when the previous owners solicitors advise the agent that the monies to complete are in and the keys can be released. After that you should tell the removal company that they can start moving you in. As a matter of policy we do not recommend a specific removal company but can help you locate a conveyancing in Balham or a firm that specialises in conveyancing in Balham.
My wife and I have arranged a further advance on our mortgage from TSB as we wish to conduct alterations to our property in Balham. Are we obliged to appoint a local Balham solicitor on the TSB conveyancing panel to handle the paperwork?
TSB do not ordinarily require firms on their approved list of lawyers to deal with the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the TSB conveyancing panel.
I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Nottingham. I assume I don't need a Balham conveyancing practitioner on the Nottingham panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.
If you have finished paying off your Nottingham mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Nottingham mortgage from the register. Nottingham, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Nottingham has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Nottingham has instructed the Land Registry to do so
About to purchase a new build apartment in Balham. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build conveyancing.
Set out below are examples of a few leasehold new build enquiries that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Balham
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Please confirm the Lease plans are surveyor prepared. Where service of notices and proceedings can be at the property demised please confirm that this can be amended to include simultaneous services at the Lessees’ solicitors’ offices where the Lessee from time to time is not resident in the UK - such solicitors may be varied by notice in writing to the Landlord from time to time but otherwise will be as previously specified. Where there is an Undertaking being granted there is the risk of forfeiture of the Headlease subject to relief if one or more of the Underlessees are willing to accept the original Head Lessee’s obligations as otherwise relief will be denied to the Underlessees. The only alternatives are the Head Lessor agreeing not to forfeit the Headlease or the Head Lessee guaranteeing to the Underlessees that it will not be in breach of the Headlease. Please supply evidence that the form of Lease proposed has been approved by the Land Registry. If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal.
I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord for a lease extension without any joy. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on such matters? Can you recommend a Balham conveyancing firm to act on my behalf?
Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Balham conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a Balham flat is First Floor Flat 152a Ramsden Road in June 2009. The net result of the tribunals calculation produced a premium payable of £23,975. This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 56.67 years.
When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Balham what are the most common lease defects?
Leasehold conveyancing in Balham is not unique. All leases are individual and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:
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Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts. Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage
You may have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Lloyds TSB Bank, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.