The Chessington conveyancing solicitors that I recently instructed on my house acquisition in Chessington have suddenly shut down. I chose them because I needed a lawyer on the Nationwide conveyancing panel and my previous Chessington lawyer was not. I gave my credit card details for them to take £195 for searches. What are my options?
Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then inform them straight away so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Nationwide conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers should be in a position to help.
My wife and I are purchasing a apartment in Chessington. I might seem paranoid but how we can trust a lawyer? On completion day we will need to put our life savings into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our monies?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
How can we tell if a Chessington conveyancing solicitor on the Co-operative panel is any good?
When it comes to conveyancing in Chessington seeking recommendations is a good starting point. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one which is cheap as chips. We would always suggest that you speak with the lawyer conducting your conveyancing.
After what feels like an age I have had an offer on a flat in Chessington accepted, the sellers do nevertheless have an associated purchase. The vendors have offered on on an apartment, but it’s not yet tied up, and are looking at other properties booked. I have chosen a local conveyancing solicitor in Chessington. What should be my next step? When should I get the mortgage application with Barclays started?
It is understandable to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur expenses prematurely (home loan application is approx £1k, then survey, Chessington conveyancing search fees, etc). First, you should ensure that your lawyer is on the Barclays approved list. As to the subsequent phase this very much dictated by the circumstances of your case, desire for this property and on the state of the market. During a hot market some purchasers will apply for the mortgage with Barclays and arrange for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they request their conveyancer to proceed with searches.
What does a local search inform me about the house my wife and I purchasing in Chessington?
Chessington conveyancing often starts with the applying for local authority searches directly from your local Authority or via a personal search organisations for instance Xpress Legal The local search plays a central role in many a Chessington conveyancing purchase; as long as you wish to avoid any nasty once you have moved into your property. The search should reveal data on, amongst other things, details on planning applications applicable to the premises (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 subject headings.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified as part of conveyancing in Chessington?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Chessington. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
How does conveyancing in Chessington differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in Chessington contact us having been asked by the builder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the residence is constructed. This is because house builders in Chessington usually acquire the real estate, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct property lawyers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are accustomed to new build conveyancing in Chessington or who has acted in the same development.
I am looking for a flat up to £235,500 and found one near me in Chessington I like with amenity areas and railway links in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 61 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Chessington in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a lease with such few years left?
If you need a mortgage the shortness of the lease will be a potential deal breaker. Discount the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for at least 2 years you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer about this.