My husband and I are purchasing a 2 bedroom apartment in Dorchester with a mortgage. We have a Dorchester lawyer, however the bank says he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the mortgage company panel conveyancing practices or continue with our Dorchester lawyer and pay for one of their panel lawyers to represent them. We consider that this is inequitable; can we not require that the lender use our Dorchester solicitor ?
Unfortunately,no. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’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. Another option that might be available is for your Dorchester conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
Can you explain why leasehold purchase conveyancing in Dorchester is more expensive?
Dorchester leasehold conveyancing transactions usually involve additional investigations than freeholds including investigating the Lease, liaising with the Landlord such as serving appropriate notices on the Landlord or managing agent, obtaining up-to-date service charge and management information, obtaining Landlord’s consents and reviewing management accounts and formation documents.
Is it necessary during the course of the conveyancing process to pop into the offices of the solicitor to execute the legal charge? If so, I will instruct a firm who offer conveyancing in Dorchester so that I can attend their offices when needed.
Nowadays conveyancing panel lawyers for lenders undertake their work via the post, e-mail or over the phone. This means that they can undertake the legal work for your home move regardless of where you live in the country. Nevertheless you should see if you have the option of visiting the offices of your conveyancing lawyer if needed.
I decided to have a survey done on a property in Dorchester prior to retaining lawyers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold element to the property. Our surveyor advised that some banks may refuse to issue a loan on this type of property.
It varies from the lender to lender. Bank of Scotland has different requirements from Birmingham Midshires. If you contact us we can investigate further via the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Dorchester. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Dorchester to see if the conveyancing costs will increase in light of this.
Do I need to be concerned about 3rd parties that I am dealing with are suggesting a nationwide conveyancing firm rather than a local Dorchester conveyancing firm?
As with lots of service providers, often input from family and friends can be very helpful. But there are many parties with a vested interest in a conveyancing transaction; estate agents, mortgage brokers and banks might all suggest lawyers to use. On occasion these lawyers might be known to one of the organisations as experts in their field, but occasionally there exists a commercial relationship behind the endorsement. You have the discretion to appoint your own lawyer. You need to be aware that the majority of lenders specify a panel list of conveyancers you are obliged to use for the lender aspect of your home move.
Last August I purchased a leasehold property in Dorchester. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?
In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, 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 be sure 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 inherited a 1 bedroom flat in Dorchester, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Dorchester with an extended lease are worth £185,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 yearly. The lease ceases on 21st October 2086
You have 60 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £20,000 and £23,000 plus professional fees.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.