I am purchasing a property and require a conveyancing solicitor in Dover who is on the Britannia approved. Can you recommend a local firm?
Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Britannia in certain locations such as Dover. We dont recommend any particular firm.
What is your number one tip for choosing a conveyancing solicitor in Dover
Do not opt for the lowest Dover conveyancing fees. You really do get what you’re paying for when it comes to property lawyers. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you know exactly what you’ll have to pay in advance.
Forgive me if this question is silly but I am unexperienced as a first time buyer of a ground floor flat in Dover. Do I pick up the keys to the premises on completion from my lawyer? If this is the case, I will find a High Street conveyancing solicitor in Dover?
There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Your solicitors will electronically transfer the completion advance to the seller's lawyers, and once they have received this, you will be invited to collect the keys from the property Agents and start moving into the property. Usually this occurs early afternoon.
I happen to be the only beneficiary of my late mum's estate and I have everything in my name now, including the my former home in Dover. The Dover property was put into my name in September. I want to move. I do know about the Mortgage Lenders 6 month 'rule', which means that my proprietorship could be considered the same way as if I'd bought the house in September. Will no one buy the property for half a year?
The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook obliges solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." By the strict wording you might be affected by that. many mortgage companies would take a pragmatic view as this clause is primarily there to capture subsales or the quick reselling of property.
What will a local search reveal about the house I am purchasing in Dover?
Dover conveyancing often starts with the ordering local authority searches directly from your local Authority or through a personal search organisations for example Searches UK The local search plays an important role in many a Dover conveyancing purchase; as long as you wish to avoid any unpleasant surprises after you move into your new home. The search should provide information on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the premises (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 topic sections.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a property I have offered on a fortnight ago in what was supposed to be a straight forward, no chain conveyancing. Dover is the location of the property. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in Dover are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Dover 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 Dover 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 premises.
I work for a busy estate agent office in Dover where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Dover conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.
An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.
Dover Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should consider Prior to buying
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Best to be warned whether fixing the lift or some other major work is pending to be shared by the tenants and will dramatically impact the level of the maintenance fees or necessitate a one off invoice. Is the freehold owned jointly by the tenants? Make sure you enquire if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For instance it is very common in Dover leases that pets are not allowed in in a block in Dover. If you like the flatin Dover but your cat is not allowed to live with you then you will be faced hard compromise.
Is it true that a Dover conveyancing firm taken to court by a client for failing to conduct comprehensive conveyancing investigations?
We are not aware of such a Dover conveyancing matter but it has been reported that, clients purchasing a property in Cumbria successfully won a claim against their property lawyer due to development plans to build a wind farm not being picked up in conveyancing searches.
If you are buying in Dover It is important that your conveyancing practitioner carry out all Dover conveyancing searches necessary making sure that you have accurate and current information ahead of acquiring a home in Dover.