I am nearing exchange of contracts for my flat in Eel Pie Island and the estate agent has just e-mailed to advise that the buyers are switching law firm. The excuse is that the lender will only deal with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. Why would a big named mortgage company only engage with certain lawyers rather the firm that they want to choose for their conveyancing in Eel Pie Island ?
UK lenders have always had panels of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the past few years big names such as Santander, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for more than 25 years.
Lending institutions attribute this action to a rise in fraud as the reason for the reduction – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. Banks tend not to disclose 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. The buyers are unlikely to have any impact on this.
My god-son is purchasing a newly built flat in Eel Pie Island with a home loan from Virgin Money. His conveyancer has said that there is a delay in completing the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. What is this document - I have never come across this before?
The form is intended to provide information to the main parties engaged in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when requested. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Virgin Money conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
Have completed on a a semi-detached house in Eel Pie Island , how long should it take for the Land Registry to record the transfer to my name? My Eel Pie Island conveyancing solicitor has been painfully slow, so I want to be sure the registration is concluded.
As far as conveyancing in Eel Pie Island is concerned, registration is no quicker or slower than anywhere else in England and Wales. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timescales can differ subject to who lodges the application, whether there are errors and if the Land registry need to notify any interested parties. At present approximately 80% of submission are completed within two weeks but occasionally there can be protracted hold-ups. Historically registration is effected once the buyer is living at the premises therefore 'speed' is not always an essential issue but where there is a degree of urgency associated with the registration then you or your lawyers must contact the land registry and explain the circumstances.
How does the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 affect my commercial premises in Eel Pie Island and how can you help?
The 1954 Act provides a safeguard to commercial leaseholders, granting the right to apply to court for a new tenancy and continue in occupation at the end of the lease term. There are certain specified grounds that a landlord can refuse a lease renewal and the rules are complex. Fees are different for commercial conveyancing. Eel Pie Island is one of our many areas of the UK in which the firms we work with have offices
I only have 72 years left on my lease in Eel Pie Island. I now want to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What are my options?
If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to locate the lessor. On the whole a specialist may be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Eel Pie Island.
I have given up trying to purchase the freehold in Eel Pie Island. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?
Absolutely. We can put you in touch with a Eel Pie Island conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Eel Pie Island flat is Ground Floor Flat 91 Bath Road in May 2009. in a case where the freeholder could not be traced, the Brentford County Court ordered that the Lease be surrendered in return for the grant of a new lease of the Premises at a premium determined by the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal. The tribunal concluded that the price payable by the Applicant for the new lease of the premises be £15,900 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term as at the valuation date was 60.45 years.
I am an executor of my recently deceased mother’s Will, with a bungalow in Eel Pie Island which is to be marketed. The property is unregistered at the Land Registry and I'm told that many purchasers will insist that it is completed before they will move forward. What's the mechanism for this?
In the circumstances that you have set out it seems sensible to seek to register in the names of the personal representative(s) as named in the probate and in their capacity as PRs. The Land Registry’s online guidance explains how to register for the first time and what is required re the deeds and forms. You would need to include and official copy of the probate as well and complete the form FR1 to refer to the PRs as the applicant.