My husband and I are purchasing a 3 bedroom apartment in Llanmartin with a mortgage. We like our Llanmartin conveyancer, however the mortgage company advise he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the mortgage company panel conveyancing practices or continue with our Llanmartin conveyancing practitioner and pay for one of their panel ones to represent them. This seems very unfair; are we not able to demand that the bank use our Llanmartin conveyancer ?
No, not really. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your Llanmartin conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
It is a dozen years since I bought my home in Llanmartin. Conveyancing solicitors have now been retained on the sale but I am unable to track down the 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 conveyancers who oversaw your purchase. Secondly the likelihood is that the land will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to prove you are the registered owner by your conveyancing solicitors acquiring up to date copy of the land registers. The vast majority of conveyancing in Llanmartin involves registered property but in the unlikely event that your property is unregistered it is more of a problem but is not insurmountable.
What is your number one tip for finding a conveyancing solicitor in Llanmartin
We would encourage you not to base your choice on the lowest Llanmartin conveyancing quote. You really do get what you’re paying for when it comes to property lawyers. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you go into the conveyancing with your eyes wide open.
My father informed me that in purchasing a property in Llanmartin there may be a number of restrictions prohibiting external changes to a property. Is this right?
There are a number of properties in Llanmartin which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to external variations. Part of the conveyancing in Llanmartin should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.
I currently have a mortgage with TSB for my property in Llanmartin. Conveyancing has been completed 12 months ago. In the event that I decide to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform TSB?
Your original mortgage agreement with TSB will provide that you need their approval prior to letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of TSB’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact TSB directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a TSB conveyancing panel solicitor.
My partner and I are close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our house in Llanmartin and according to the buyers it appears that there is a possibility that the property was constructed on contaminated land. Any high street Llanmartin conveyancer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the buyers instructed an internet conveyancing practice as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Llanmartin. Having lived in Llanmartin for 4 years we know of no issue. Do we contact our local Authority to get clarification need.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing lawyer already. What do they say? You must check with 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 health insurance to cover that same sickness)
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a property I have offered on a fortnight ago in what should have been a quick, chain free conveyancing. Llanmartin is the location of the property. Can you offer any guidance?
Flying freeholds in Llanmartin are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Llanmartin you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds thoroughly. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Llanmartin may decide 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.
Last November I purchased a leasehold house in Llanmartin. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?
Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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. It is an essential part 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).
Llanmartin Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying
-
You will want to discover as much as you can about the company managing the block as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you will be at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to daily matters like the tidiness of the communal areas. Ask prospective neighbours what they think of their management. On a final note, be sure you know the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the managing agents and specifically what you get for your money. Best to be warned whether changing the roof or some other major work is anticipated to be shared amongst the leaseholders and could well dramatically impact the level of the maintenance costs or necessitate a one time invoice. The majority of Llanmartin leasehold flats will have a service charge for maintenance of the building invoiced on behalf of the freeholder. If you acquire the flat you will have to meet this liability, normally in instalments throughout the year. This could differ from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built blocks. There will also be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, ordinarily this is not a large figure, say around £50-£100 but you should to enquire as occasionally it can be prohibitively expensive.