I am in the process of selling my house in Crowland and the estate agent has just text me to warn that the buyers are swapping property lawyer. The excuse is that the bank will only work with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. Why would a major mortgage company only engage with certain law firms rather the firm that they want to appoint for their conveyancing in Crowland ?
Mortgage companies have always had panels of law firms that can represent them, but in recent years big names such as Lloyds Banking Group, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for decades.
Banks blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your buyers are not going to have any impact on this.
I own a freehold premises in Crowland but nevertheless pay rent, why is this and what is this?
It’s unusual for properties in Crowland and has limited impact for conveyancing in Crowland but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.
Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges have existed for hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the generation of fresh rentcharges post 1977.
Previous rentcharges can now be redeemed by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence post 2037 is to be dispensed with completely.
A colleague recommended that where I am buying in Crowland I should ask my conveyancer to perform a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
This is a search is occasionally quoted for as part of the standard Crowland conveyancing searches. It is a large report of more than thirty pages, listing and detailing important information about Crowland around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime details, Crowland Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data about Crowland.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold element on a house I have offered on last month in what should have been a simple, chain free conveyancing. Crowland is the location of the property. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in Crowland are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Crowland you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds very carefully. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Crowland may decide that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.
As co-executor for the will of my grandfather I am disposing of a property in Swansea but reside in Crowland. My conveyancer (who is 260 kilometers from mehas requested that I sign a statutory declaration prior to completion. Could you suggest a conveyancing solicitor in Crowland to witness and place their company stamp on the document?
Technically speaking you should not need to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily or notary public or qualified solicitor will be fine regardless of whether they are Crowland based
My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Crowland. Conveyancing and Coventry Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing solicitor in Crowland who previously acted has now retired. Any advice?
First contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a Crowland conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I am the registered owner of a split level flat in Crowland, conveyancing was carried out November 2012. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Crowland with an extended lease are worth £255,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease expires on 21st October 2099
With 73 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £8,600 and £9,800 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.