My husband and I are planning to purchase a house in Caerwys and have instructed a Caerwys conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our property lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. The Mortgage Works have this afternoon contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Caerwys solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is conventional for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the mortgage company. 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 bank 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 don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Caerwys solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
Is there a reason why leasehold purchase conveyancing in Caerwys is more expensive?
Caerwys leasehold conveyancing transactions usually involve additional investigations than freeholds including investigating the Lease, liaising with the Landlord such as serving relevant notices on the Landlord or managing agent, obtaining up-to-date service charge and management information, obtaining Landlord’s consents and reviewing management accounts and formation documents.
We are due to move home in November. Will my conveyancing solicitor update the removal company on the day of completion. As an aside, can you put forward a removal company in Caerwys. Conveyancing firm was found prior to coming across your page.
On the day of completion you can collect the house keys from the estate agent however this should only be done when the previous owners lawyers inform the agent that the monies to complete are in and the keys can be passed over. Subsequently you can tell the removal company that they can start moving you in. As a matter of policy we do not suggest a specific removal company but can help you choose a residential property solicitor in Caerwys or a lawyer that specialises in conveyancing in Caerwys.
My conveyancer has informed me that flying freehold insurance is necessary on my purchase. What is the typical level of cover needed for conveyancing in Caerwys?
The right level of flying freehold indemnity insurance should be dictated by who your lender. It would differ for example between HSBC Bank and Coventry Building Society. Conveyancing solicitors as opposed to borrowers take out such policies.
The mortgage over my property is with Nottingham for my property in Caerwys. Conveyancing was finalised some time ago. If I am intending to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Nottingham?
You must advise Nottingham before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Nottingham’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Nottingham will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Nottingham directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Nottingham conveyancing panel solicitor.
I'm buying a new build house in Caerwys benefiting from help to buy. The builders refused to move on the price so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The house builders rep suggested that I not reveal to my solicitor about the deal as it would jeopardize my loan with Aldermore. 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.
My step-father has recommend that I instruct his lawyers for conveyancing in Caerwys. Should I use them?
No doubt it’s preferable to select a conveyancing lawyer is to have recommendations from friends or family who have previously instructed the conveyancer that you are considering.
I work for a reputable estate agency in Caerwys where we have witnessed a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Caerwys conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.
An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.
Caerwys Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying
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Please note that where the lease has no more than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the salability of the property. Check with your lender that they are content with the length of the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely require a lease extension at some point and it is worth discovering what this will be. Remember, in most cases you would be be obliged to have been the owner of the premises for 24 months in order to be entitled to extend the lease. This information is useful as a) areas could result in problems for the block as the common areas may start to deteriorate where repairs remain unpaid b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the managing agents you will want to have all the details Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments?