I am nearing exchange of contracts for my house in Colliers Wood and the estate agent has just called to warn that the purchasers are swapping conveyancer. The excuse is that the mortgage company will only engage with solicitors on their approved list. Why would a big named mortgage company only work with certain solicitors rather the firm that they want to select for their conveyancing in Colliers Wood ?
UK lenders have always had an approved set of law firms that can represent them, but in recent years big names such as Nationwide, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for decades.
Lenders point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the pruning – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Some are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The purchasers are not going to have any impact on this.
Please help. My Colliers Wood solicitor is informing me me that she is duty bound toorder Colliers Wood conveyancing searches resulting from the fact thatthe firm are on the Virgin Moneysolicitor panel. These Colliers Wood searches cost a lot of money can this be avoided?
Unfortunately both you and your lawyer have little choice here. Given that you are taking out a loan with a lender your property lawyer has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the CML Conveyancing Handbook. Your conveyancer would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of your bank’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to follow the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook specifications . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Colliers Wood conveyancing searches.
Why is leasehold purchase conveyancing in Colliers Wood costs more?
The conveyancing fees on a leasehold property in Colliers Wood is often more expensive than on a freehold property. This is because there is an amount of supplemental time necessary in liaising with the freeholder and management company to obtain evidence about whether the rent and service charges have been paid and whether there are any significant expenditure in the foreseeable future on repairs or maintenance of the building.
It has been five months since my purchase conveyancing in Colliers Wood concluded. I have checked the Land Registry website which shows that I paid £175,000 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 premises 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'm buying a new build house in Colliers Wood with a mortgage from Barclays Direct. The sellers refused to move on the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of additionals instead. The estate agent told me not reveal to my lawyer about this extras as it could put at risk my mortgage with the lender. 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.
There are only Seventy years remaining on my flat in Colliers Wood. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What should I do?
If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the lessor. On the whole an enquiry agent would be helpful to carry out a search and prepare an expert document to be used as proof that the landlord is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to proving the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Colliers Wood.
I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can I make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Colliers Wood conveyancing firm to represent me?
Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Colliers Wood conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a Colliers Wood residence is 14 Nutwell Street in January 2014. The premium payable for the acquisition of a new lease of the subject premises was in the sum of £30,523 This case affected 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 62.94 years.