It is is a decade since I acquired my home in Hessle. Conveyancing solicitors have just been appointed on the sale but I can't track down my title deeds. Is this a major issue?
Don’t worry too much. First there is a chance that the deeds will be retained by your lender or they may be in the possession of the solicitor who acted in the purchase. Secondly the chances are that the land will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you own the property by your conveyancing lawyers acquiring up to date copy of the land registers. Most conveyancing in Hessle relates to registered property but in the rare situation where your property is not registered it is more of a problem but is resolvable.
My wife and I have arranged a further advance on our home loan from UBS as we intend to conduct a loft conversion to our property in Hessle. Do we need to select a bricks and mortar Hessle solicitor on the UBS conveyancing panel to handle the legals?
UBS would not normally appoint a member of their conveyancing panel to handle the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the UBS conveyancing panel.
I have decided to exercise my right to buy my property in Hessle off the council. I have a mortgage agreed with Bank of Ireland. Conveyancing is not something I have any knowledge of. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should use one. Any advice?
It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with Bank of Ireland, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel.
Having digested plenty of house buying guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Hessle solicitor - who is on the Principality conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. is that correct?
Principality will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Principality will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. Your property lawyer will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by your Hessle postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Principality, you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Hessle.
three months have elapsed following my purchase conveyancing in Hessle took place. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £200,000 when infact I paid £160,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the asset from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £235,500 and found one near me in Hessle I like with a park and transport links nearby, however it only has 51 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Hessle for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a short lease?
Should you require a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term may be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you may ask them to start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor regarding this.
Last January I purchased a leasehold property in Hessle. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?
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. A critical element 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).
Hessle Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to Purchasing
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How long is the Lease? It is important to be aware whether changing the roof or some other significant cost is coming up to be shared amongst the leasehold owners and may well dramatically impact the level of the maintenance costs or necessitate a specific invoice. For many Hessle leaseholds the cost for major works tend not to be included within service charges, although some managing agents in Hessle obliged tenants to contribute towards a sinking fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for larger repairs or maintenance.
A licensed conveyancer handled my conveyancing in Hessle half a dozen years ago and was holding my deeds but has since been shut down – What steps do I now take to retreive these?
Deeds, as such, are no longer appropriate for most properties in Hessle are archived electronically at Land Registry. Where you need to prove ownership or are disposing of or re-mortgaging your conveyancer will need to obtain up to date copies of the register from the Land Registry in any case.
If you feel there may be other documents or you have any other queries please e-mail your request with details of the transaction and documents you need to filerequest@clc-uk.org. The CLC will let you know what information they have and any additional information they may need before they are in a position to identify and send the documents to you. Following an intervention it may take some time for the CLC to access archived files and documents, but your request will be actioned as quickly as possible.