We are intending to buy a 2 bedroom apartment in Church End with a mortgage. We have a Church End lawyer, but the mortgage company advise he's not on their "panel". It seems we have little option but to select one of the mortgage company panel conveyancing practices or keep our Church End property lawyer as well as pay for one of their panel ones to represent them. We feel that this is inequitable; is there anything we can do?
No, not really. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your Church End conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
I require conveyancing for a flat in a relatively new development (five years built) in Church End. The vast majority the flats have already been disposed of. Is it really necessary to order local searches for my conveyancing in Church End?
You would be putting yourself at risk in refusing to carrying out Church End conveyancing searches. Without searches you have no clarity over flooding, environmental etc which may mean you walk away due to potential problems down the line. If you are buying without a mortgage there is no legal necessity to have them, but we would strongly advise in the strongest possible terms that your lawyer conducts them. If timings and expenses are primary issues you should discuss with your solicitor about the options such as lack of search insurance available to you
Planning on purchasing a apartment in Church End. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Lender if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the HSBC conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Church End solicitor is on the HSBC conveyancing panel.
I was told two weeks ago that my mortgage has been agreed to by Skipton. Is it usual for Skipton to only issue the offer once my solicitor in Church End is approved on their conveyancing panel? Skipton have asked my solicitor to see a copy of their Professional Indemnity Insurance Schedule.
Mortgage companies tend not to not issue a mortgage until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Skipton to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the Skipton conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
My offer on a detached house in Church End has been agreed to, the sellers do however have a dependent purchase. The owners have placed an offer on a property, but it’s not yet tied up, and are looking at other properties booked. I have selected a nearby conveyancing solicitor in Church End. What do I do now? At what stage should I apply for the mortgage with Kent Reliance?
It is usual to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket prematurely (mortgage application is approx one thousand pounds, then survey, Church End conveyancing search charges, etc). The first course of action is to check that your conveyancing practitioner is on the Kent Reliance approved list. Regarding the next stages this very much depends on the specifics of your transaction, motivation for this property and on the state of the market. In a buoyant market the majority of purchasers will apply for a home loan with Kent Reliance and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they pay their conveyancing practitioner to move forward with the conveyancing in Church End.
Do I need to take out insurance to protect me from financial exposure to chancel repairs when buying a residence in Church End?
Unless a previous acquisition of the property completed after 12 October 2013 you could expect solicitors handling conveyancing in Church End to continue to advocate a chancel search and or insurance against a claim.
In my capacity as executor for the will of my grandmother I am selling a residence in Newport but I am based in Church End. My conveyancer (based 260 kilometers from meneeds me to sign a statutory declaration before the transaction finalising. Could you suggest a conveyancing solicitor in Church End to attest this legal document for me?
strictly speaking you are unlikely to need to have the documents witnessed by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily or notary public or solicitor will be fine regardless of whether they are Church End based
I work for a reputable estate agency in Church End where we have witnessed a number of flat sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Church End conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?
As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.
Alternatively, it may be possible 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 purchaser.
I am the registered owner of a second floor flat in Church End. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the sum payable for a lease extension?
Where there is a missing landlord or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to make a decision on the premium.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Church End residence is Ground Floor 110 Station Road in June 2013. The Tribunal found that the premium payable for a lease extension should be £31,665. This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 56.65 years.