I am selling my ground floor flat in Littleborough and the estate agent has just called to advise that the buyers are appointing a new law firm. I am told that this is due to the fact that the lender will only deal with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a big named lender only engage with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to choose for their conveyancing in Littleborough ?
Lenders have always had panels of law firms they are content to work with, but in the past few years big names such as Lloyds Banking Group, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for more than 15 years.
Lenders point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is hearing daily from firms 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. Your buyers are unlikely to have any impact on this.
I am selling our house in Littleborough and according to the buyers it appears that there is a risk of it being constructed on contaminated land. A local conveyancer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers instructed a national conveyancing practice rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Littleborough. Having lived in Littleborough for 4 years we know of no issue. Should we contact our local Authority to obtain confirmation that there is no issue.
It would appear that you have a conveyancing solicitor currently acting for you. What do they say? You should enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same ailment)
I am buying a new build house in Littleborough with the aid of help to buy. The developers refused to budge the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of fixtures and fittings instead. The property agent told me not to tell my conveyancer about the side-deal as it may affect my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
Due to the input of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a property in Littleborough ahead of appointing conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold overhang to the house. The surveyor advised that some banks may not grant a mortgage on such a home.
It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different instructions from Halifax. Should you wish to telephone us we can check via the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Littleborough. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Littleborough to see if the conveyancing costs will increase in light of this.
I have recently realised that I have Sixty One years unexpired on my flat in Littleborough. I need to get lease extension but my freeholder is missing. What should I do?
If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be granted an extra 90 years by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent would be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare a report to be used as proof that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Littleborough.
I invested in buying a split level flat in Littleborough, conveyancing having been completed April 2002. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Comparable properties in Littleborough with a long lease are worth £195,000. The ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease terminates on 21st October 2087
With just 64 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £14,300 and £16,400 as well as professional fees.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.
My mother and father are unable to locate their Littleborough property on the HMLR site. They recall that sixty years ago when they acquired the property there were complications regarding Littleborough not being identified on some systems.
Almost all premises in Littleborough should show up. Have you limited your search with just the postcode. Usually it should mention all the houses and flats inside that postcode. Assuming the property is recorded it will show up with a title number. If they bought back in the 60’s it's conceivable it may be unrecorded. The address might still be revealed but with the title number shown 'na'. In this scenario you will need to find the original title deeds which may be with your parent’s lender.