My wife and I are purchasing a new build flat in Dartford and my lawyer is telling me that she has to the bank to reveal incentives from the developer. I am nearing the developer’s deadline to sign contracts and I would rather not prolong matters. Is my lawyer right?
You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your conveyancer. A precondition to being on a lender panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook specifications. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.
We are buying a house and require a conveyancing solicitor in Dartford who is on the Lloyds conveyancing panel. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a solicitor?
Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Lloyds . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in Dartford.
This question may be naive but I am wet behind the ears as FTB of a ground floor flat in Dartford. Do I receive the keys to the premises on the completion date from my solicitor? If this is the case, I will use a local conveyancing solicitor in Dartford?
There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Conveyancing lawyers for you will arrange to send the purchase money to the vendor’s lawyers, and once they have received this, you will be able to receive the keys from the selling Agents and move into your new home. This tends to happen between 1 and 3pm.
Is it correct that all Dartford CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors are on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing list of approved solicitors?
Some major banks and building societies now make use of the accreditation scheme as the starting point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. CQS membership however is no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. Nevertheless,the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitor practices wishing to remain on their approved list of conveyancing solicitors.
I am due to exchange contracts on my apartment. I had a double glazing fitted in April 2008, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's lender, Nationwide are being difficult. The Dartford solicitor who is on the Nationwide conveyancing panel is saying indemnity insurance will be fine but Nationwide are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do Nationwide have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that Nationwide have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Nationwide may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
I'm buying a new build house in Dartford with a loan from HSBC Bank. The developers refused to budge the amount so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The sale representative advised me not inform my lawyer about the extras as it may impact my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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.
I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold element on a property I put an offer in last month in what was supposed to be a quick, chain free conveyancing. Dartford is the location of the property. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in Dartford are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Dartford you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Dartford 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 property.
Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Dartford with the purpose of speeding up the sale process?
- Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Dartford can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers’ representatives. If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled. You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is below 75 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale. If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming formality and slows down many a Dartford home move. Where a duplicate share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible. Many freeholders or managing agents in Dartford charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Dartford.
I inherited a two-bedroom flat in Dartford. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the premium payable for a lease extension?
in cases where there is a absentee landlord or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to make a decision on the price.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Dartford residence is Various @ Colombus Square in January 2012. the Tribunal calculated the premiums to be paid for new leases for each of the flats in Mariners Walk to be £3822 and the premium to be paid for the new lease of 2 Knights Court to be £4439. This case was in relation to 13 flats. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 76 years.