Me and my brother own a renovated Edwardian property in Blackfriars. Conveyancing practitioner represented me and Accord Mortgages Ltd. I did a free Land Registry search last week and there are a couple of entries: one for freehold, the second leasehold with the exact same address. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?
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 owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Blackfriars and other locations in 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 check the position with the conveyancing solicitor who conducted the conveyancing.
I am purchasing a new build house in Blackfriars with a mortgage from Britannia. The developers would not move on the amount so I negotiated £7000 of fixtures and fittings instead. The property agent advised me not disclose to my conveyancer about this extras as it could adversely affect my loan with the lender. Is this normal?.
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 ground for flat up to £305k and found one round the corner in Blackfriars I like with amenity areas and railway links in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 49 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Blackfriars suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a lease with such few years left?
Should you require a home loan that many years may be problematic. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the property for a minimum of 2 years you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer regarding this matter.
We're FTB’s - had an offer accepted, but the agent advised that the seller will only proceed if we use the agent's preferred conveyancers as they need a ‘quick sale’. We would rather use a high street solicitor with experience of conveyancing in Blackfriars
It is highly unlikely the owners are driving this. Should the seller want ‘a quick sale', taking such a hostile approach to a motivated purchaser is is going to put the whole deal at risk. Avoid the agents and go straight to the sellers and explain that (a)you are keen to buy (b)you are excited to move forward, with finances arranged © you have nothing to sell (d) you intend to proceed fast (e)however you intend to use your preferred Blackfriars conveyancing solicitors - as opposed tothose that will give the negotiator at the agency a introducer fee or hit his conveyancing thresholds set by senior management.
I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Blackfriars. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?
The majority of houses in Blackfriars are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Blackfriars so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Blackfriars conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is part of an estate. Your lawyer will report to you on the legal implications.
I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord for a lease extension without getting anywhere. Can I apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Blackfriars conveyancing firm to assist?
in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or if there is dispute 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 arrive at the premium.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a Blackfriars premises is Flat 89 Trinity Court Grays Inn Road in February 2013. the Tribunal found that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 should be £36,229. This case related to 1 flat. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 66.8 years.
I am purchasing a ground floor apartment in Blackfriars. Conveyancing lawyer has been awaiting, from the owner, building insurance schedule. This morning I was informed that the vendor needs to send the insurance paperwork for the flat above as well. Why does my conveyancer want to review the insurance for the flat above? Is it strictly required? We have been in hold for the previous 4 weeks…
It is not unheard of in leasehold conveyancing in Blackfriars to discover Conveyancing in Blackfriars in a minority of cases reveals that the lease obliges the leasehold owners to insure their individual flats rather than the freeholder insuring the complete building - which is definitely preferable. You should contact your conveyancer but it would appear that your lawyer is attempting to establish that the whole building is insured. Insuring your residence is no help when it comes to rebuilding after a fire if the other flat cannot be reconstructed due to lack of insurance cover.