My husband and I are planning to buy a house in Croydon and are in fact using a Croydon conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Halifax have this morning contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Croydon solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?
Where you are buying a property needing a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Croydon solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
Finally the sale completed on my house in Croydon last December yet the purchaser is calling me to moan that her solicitor needs to hear from mine. What should my lawyer have done following completion?
Following your disposal your conveyancer should deliver the transfer deeds and all supplemental paperwork to the purchaser's conveyancer. Depending on the transaction, your solicitor must also evidence that the legal charge in favour of the lender has been discharged to the buyers lawyers. There are no post completion formalities unique to conveyancing in Croydon.
About to place an offer on a leasehold apartment in Croydon. The selling agents assure me that it is the norm for flats in Croydon to have less than 75 years unexpired on the lease. I am expecting a mortgage with Accord Mortgages. Is this going to be acceptable if the lease has 70 years unexpired.
Most leasehold conveyancing experts should be able to deal with a lease extension. if you are obtaining a mortgage then your lender may insist that the lease be extended before competition. Accord Mortgages have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook in relation to minimum unexpired lease terms. As of 13/10/2021 the requirements read as follows :
How does conveyancing in Croydon differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build property in Croydon come to us having been asked by the seller to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is constructed. This is because developers in Croydon 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 Croydon or who has acted in the same development.
My partner has recommend that I instruct his lawyers for conveyancing in Croydon. Should I use them?
No doubt the ideal way to select a conveyancing practitioner is to get guidance from friends or relatives who have actually used the solicitor that you are considering.
Last April I purchased a leasehold house in Croydon. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?
Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.
If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).
I have given up trying to reach an agreement for a lease extension in Croydon. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?
Most certainly. We are happy to put you in touch with a Croydon conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Croydon property is 29 Woodstock Road in April 2014. the Tribunal determined that the premiums to be paid into court in respect of the purchase of the freehold registered at HMLR under Title N0.SY3997 should be £7,217. This case related to 4 flats. The unexpired lease term was 98 years.