My husband and I changing mortgage lender for our maisonette in Eltham with Principality. We have a son approaching twenty who lives at home. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the property is repossessed. I have two questions (1) Is this document specific to the Principality conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we purchased 4 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this compromise his entitlement to inherit the property?
On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Principality. This is solely used to protect Principality if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Principality had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
Do I need to have a meeting at the offices of the solicitor to execute the mortgage deed? If so, I will appoint a lawyer who conducts conveyancing in Eltham so that I can pop in to their offices if required.
As opposed to 15 years ago, almost all mortgage companies no longer require their conveyancing panel solicitor to witness the borrowers signature. You will still be obliged to supply identification documents and there are still distinct benefits to instructing a locally based practitioner, in your situation a conveyancing solicitor in Eltham.
The estate agent has sent us the confirmation of our purchase of a new build flat in Eltham. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build legal work.
Here are examples of a selection of leasehold new build enquiries that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Eltham
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Please confirm the Lease plans are surveyor prepared. There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants. Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier? Where there is an Undertaking being granted there is the risk of forfeiture of the Headlease subject to relief if one or more of the Underlessees are willing to accept the original Head Lessee’s obligations as otherwise relief will be denied to the Underlessees. The only alternatives are the Head Lessor agreeing not to forfeit the Headlease or the Head Lessee guaranteeing to the Underlessees that it will not be in breach of the Headlease. Will the freehold then be transferred for a nominal consideration (not exceeding £100) to the Management Company?
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold element on a house I put an offer in two weeks back in what was supposed to be a quick, no chain conveyancing. Eltham is where the house is located. Can you shed any light on this issue?
Flying freeholds in Eltham are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Eltham you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds thoroughly. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Eltham may ascertain 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 residence.
Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Eltham with the aim of saving time on the sale process?
- Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Eltham can be avoided if you appoint lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and ask them to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers’ solicitors. You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to verify this by asking your solicitors. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale. Some Eltham leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors. If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Eltham state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Where you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not contact the landlord without checking with your lawyer in advance.
Notwithstanding our best efforts, we have been unsuccessful in trying to purchase the freehold in Eltham. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?
You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a Eltham conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Eltham flat is 103a Footscray Road in January 2014. The tribunal determines that the premium payable for the extended lease should be £34,500 according to the expert witness valuation calculation This case was in relation to 1 flat.
My husband and I are buying a garden flat in Eltham. When we first instructed lawyer, we were told they were on all mainstream mortgage company panels. Our mortgage broker emailed just now to say that they don't seem to be on the Clydesdale approved list. Should that be true, what should we do? Do we simply find a new conveyancing practitioner that is on their approved list or do we cover the costs for separate representation, with Clydesdale selecting their own preferred solicitor.
When buying a property with mortgage finance it is standard for the buyer’s solicitors to also represent the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a conveyancer has to be on that lender's list of approved lawyers. An application has to be made by the property lawyer to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict conditions which the conveyancer has to meet. Some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your lawyer should call Clydesdale 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 don't have to instruct a firm on Clydesdale's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Eltham lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the equation.