My fiance and I are planning to purchase a home in Bexhill and have instructed a Bexhill 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. Nottingham Building Society have this morning contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Bexhill lawyer is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?
Where you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' solicitors to also represent the purchaser's lender. 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 Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Bexhill solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
We see that you have a post code search directory identifying solicitors on the Skipton conveyancing panel. Do firms pay you a referral fee if I retain them for our conveyancing in Bexhill?
We are a listing service only for law firms wishing to communicate if they are on the Skipton conveyancing panel or other lender panels. We do not charge referral fees to any conveyancer that you subsequently appoint for your conveyancing in Bexhill.
Do I have to pop into the offices of the solicitor to sign the mortgage deed? If so, I will instruct a firm who offer conveyancing in Bexhill so that I can attend their offices if necessary.
Whereas this was necessary twenty years ago, the vast majority banks no longer require their conveyancing panel solicitor to witness the mortgagors signature. It will still be necessary for you to supply identification documents and there are still manifest advantages to choosing a local practitioner, in your case a conveyancing solicitor in Bexhill.
I am purchasing my first flat in Bexhill with a mortgage from Leeds Building Society. The builders would not budge the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of fixtures and fittings instead. The sale representative advised me not inform my solicitor about this side-deal as it would impact my mortgage with Leeds Building Society. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £245,000 and found one round the corner in Bexhill I like with a park and transport links in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 52 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Bexhill in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a lease with such few years left?
Should you need a mortgage that many years may be an issue. Reduce the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you could request that they start the process of the extension and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor regarding this matter.
I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Bexhill. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?
In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee 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. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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 own a ground floor flat in Bexhill, conveyancing having been completed 5 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Bexhill with an extended lease are worth £221,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease ends on 21st October 2091
You have 70 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus professional fees.
The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.