We have agreed to purchase a house in Cann Hall. One unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Solicitors conducting should look into this right? Will my lender Bank of Ireland be concerned?
Given that you are obtaining a mortgage with Bank of Ireland your lawyer must check the conveyancing instructions outlined in Part two of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Bank of Ireland. The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook stipulates minimum requirements for solar panel roof-space leases, and conveyancing practitioners are required to report to Bank of Ireland where a lease fails to comply with these requirements. The conditions relate to the installation of panels on properties in England and Wales and is not isolated to Cann Hall.
I am due to exchange contracts on my apartment. I had a double glazing fitted in January 2008, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My purchaser’s lender, RBS are being difficult. The Cann Hall solicitor who is on the RBS conveyancing panel is happy to accept ‘lack of building regulation’ insurance but RBS are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do RBS have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that RBS have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why RBS may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
I've read lots of house buying guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Cann Hall solicitor - who is on the Skipton conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. is that correct?
Skipton will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Skipton will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. Your conveyancer will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by your Cann Hall postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Skipton, you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Cann Hall.
I know that there are debates on Chancel Insurance on online forums. Do I require this when buying a residence in Cann Hall? or I am told that there is historic law that means some house owners living in a parish church boundary will be compelled to pay for maintenance to the chancel in proximity to the church. Is this applicable for conveyancing in Cann Hall?
Unless a previous acquisition of the property took place after 12 October 2013 you can expect solicitors carrying out conveyancing in Cann Hall to continue to propose a a chancel search and or chancel repair liability policy.
I am looking for a ground for flat up to £305k and identified one close by in Cann Hall I like with a park and station in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 49 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Cann Hall 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 the shortness of the lease will be problematic. Discount the price 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 ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor about this.
In what way does the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 affect my business offices in Cann Hall and how can you help?
The particular law that you refer to affords security of tenure to business leaseholders, granting the dueness to make a request to court for a new lease and continue in occupation at the end of an expired lease. There are limited grounds where a landlord can refrain from granting a lease renewal and the rules are involved. We are happy to direct you to commercial conveyancing practices who use the act to your advantage and help with commercial conveyancing in Cann Hall
Is it best to instruct a Cann Hall conveyancing practitioner in close proximity to the house I am purchasing? We have a good friend who can deal with the legal work but his firm is located 200miles drive away.
The benefit of a local Cann Hall conveyancing firm is that you can attend the office to execute paperwork, hand in your identification documents and apply pressure on them if necessary. They will also have local insight which is a bonus. That being said it's more important to get someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If you know people who instructed your friend and in the main were impressed that should outweigh using an unfamiliar Cann Hall conveyancing lawyer solely due to them being local.
Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Cann Hall with the intention of saving time on the sale process?
- Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Cann Hall can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers. You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to verify this via your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is under 80 years. It is therefore essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale. A minority of Cann Hall leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors. If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to unresolved. If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Obtaining a duplicate share certificate can be a lengthy process and frustrates many a Cann Hall conveyancing deal. If a new share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
Following months of correspondence we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Cann Hall. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?
Where there is a absentee freeholder or where there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to assess the price payable.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Cann Hall property is 36 New Wanstead in August 2010. The Tribunal arrived at a valuation of the premium for the freehold of £22,359. This case affected 2 flats. The unexpired term as at the valuation date was 73.92 years.