I am purchasing a semi-detached house in Christchurch. Can I do my own conveyancing?
Leaving aside the complexities and merits of DIY conveyancing in Christchurch you will have to appoint a solicitor on your mortgage company's conveyancing panel to look after their interests. Most people therefore find it easier to let the solicitor act for them and the lender. Furthermore there is minimal cost savings to be made in you doing conveyancing for yourself and another lawyer conducting the conveyancing for the lender. Please feel free to use the search tool to find a lawyer on your lender panel in Christchurch.
Various online forums that I have visited warn that are the main reason for hinderance in Christchurch conveyancing transactions. Is there any truth in this?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) released determinations of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature within the most frequent causes of hindrances in the conveyancing process. Local searches are not likely to feature in any slowing down conveyancing in Christchurch.
4 months have gone by following my purchase conveyancing in Christchurch concluded. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £200,000 when infact I paid £215,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the property from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
I am looking into buying my first house which is in Christchurch and I am already nervous. I couldn't find anything specific about Christchurch. Conveyancing will be needed in due course but do you know about the Christchurch area? or perhaps some other tips you can share?
Rather than looking online forget looking online you should go and have a look at Christchurch. In the meantime here are some basic statistics that we found
Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Christchurch from the perspective of expediting the sale process?
- Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Christchurch can be reduced where you appoint lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers’ conveyancers. If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Arranging a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy process and delays many a Christchurch home move. If a reissued share is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity. You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is under 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale. A minority of Christchurch leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet 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 service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors. The majority of landlords or Management Companies in Christchurch levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Christchurch.
Christchurch Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries Prior to Purchasing
-
Plenty Christchurch leasehold apartments will have a service charge for maintenance of the block set on behalf of the landlord. If you buy the property you will have to pay this charge, normally in instalments throughout the year. This may vary from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common grounds. In all probability there will be a ground rent to be met annual, ordinarily this is not a significant sum, say around £50-£100 but you need to check it because occasionally it could be prohibitively expensive. How much is the ground rent and service charge?
We own a leasehold flat in Christchurch. Conveyancing was finished in five years ago. I have heard that I should not allow the lease length fall too low. What is the reasoning?
Christchurch leasehold properties are for a fixed period - normally just under one hundred years when they started. However many flats in Christchurch were constructed or converted 20 or more years ago and so these leases now have under eighty years unexpired. That may sound like plenty of time however Banks, Building Societies and other mortgage companies tend to require leases to have at least seventy five years left to be mortgageable. Accordingly when you come to sell the property you will need to extend the term of your lease if you are getting close to 75 years. To maximise your property value you should be considering whether to extend your lease well in advance of selling the property. There are also strong financial reasons to taking action before the lease reaches even 80 years as when the lease falls below 80 years the amount you have to pay to extend starts to get a lot more expensive.