My partner and I are hoping to purchase a house in Finchampstead and are in fact using a Finchampstead conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our conveyancer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Leeds Building Society have this morning contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Finchampstead lawyer is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?
Where you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Finchampstead solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
My nephew is about to exchange on a new build apartment in Finchampstead with a home loan from Co-operative. His lawyer has advised him of a delay in receiving 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 involved in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Co-operative conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when asked. 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 Co-operative conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
At what point can the exchange of contracts take place for purchase conveyancing in Finchampstead and do I need to be at the solicitors branch?
If you are in close proximity to our conveyancing solicitors in Finchampstead you are welcome to come in to sign documents. However, the lender approved solicitors we work with provide countrywide coverage for conveyancing and give just as detailed and professional a job for you when communicating with you by post or email. The executing of the sale agreement is not the critical part. A signed contract is necessary for the firm to officially exchange at the appropriate time, which is ordinarily shortly after signing. The procedure is is usually a five minute process, although where a long "chain" is in the mix, since the process requires the relevant party's solicitor (not necessarily a conveyancing solicitor in Finchampstead)to be in the office at the appropriate time.
I have an AIP. The bank mentioned the home loan came with free conveyancing. Does this mean I have to instruct their panel lawyer as I would much rather use a Finchampstead based conveyancing firm?
Do check but the chances are that appoint one of their panel lawyers should you take up the "fee-free" offer. Call the lender to see if they make available a cash alternative. Some mortgage companies have previously offered a £250 cashback as a further option in which case you could put that amount towards your preferred conveyancing solicitor near Finchampstead.
I am looking for a conveyancing lawyer in Finchampstead for my house move. Is there any facility to see a firm’s record with the profession’s regulator?
One may see presented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) determinations resulting from inquisitions started on or after Jan 2008. Visit Check a solicitor's record. For information about the period before 1 January 2008, or to check a firm's record, ring 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and 09.30 - 18.00 Tuesday. International callers, use +44 (0)121 329 6800. The SRA sometimes monitor telephone calls for training requirements.
I own a leasehold flat in Finchampstead. Conveyancing and Barclays Direct mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing practitioner in Finchampstead who previously acted has now retired. Any advice?
First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Finchampstead conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I acquired a 2 bed flat in Finchampstead, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable properties in Finchampstead with a long lease are worth £185,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease finishes on 21st October 2085
You have 60 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £20,000 and £23,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.