I chose a high street firm for my conveyancing in Lytham today. Reviewing the Ts and Cs it is apparent thatwe are on the hook for fees even if the sale doesn't happen. Should I ditch them and use an on-line firm who offer no move no charge conveyancing in Lytham?
It is usually a trade off in that if "No Sale No Fee" is available then the conveyancing charges will tend to be be more expensive to cover those cases that do not proceed. You should be mindful that such offerings generally do not protect you from expenditure such your Lytham conveyancing search fees.
My wife and I intend to remortgage our apartment in Lytham with Leeds Building Society. We have a son 18 who lives at home. Our solicitor requested us to identify anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who reside at the property. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the apartment is repossessed. I have a couple of questions (1) Is this document specific to the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we bought 4 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?
First, rest assured that your Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing 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 Leeds Building Society. This is solely used to protect Leeds Building Society 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 Leeds Building Society 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.
It is is a decade since I acquired my home in Lytham. Conveyancing lawyers have just been appointed on the sale but I am unable to locate the title documents. 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 could be archived with the solicitor who handled your purchase. Secondly the likelihood is that the property will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to prove you are the registered owner by your conveyancing solicitors procuring current official copies of the land registers. Almost all conveyancing in Lytham relates to registered property but in the rare situation where your home is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is resolvable.
Please explain the implications if my solicitor is removed from the Bank of Ireland Solicitor panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Lytham?
First, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit at a cost.
My wife and I own a 4 bedroom Edwardian house in Lytham. Conveyancing solicitor acted for me and Barclays . I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw a couple of entries: the first freehold, the second leasehold with the matching address. I thought I was buying a freehold how can I check?
You should review the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Lytham and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with mortgage companies. You can also enquire as to the position with your conveyancing practitioner who carried out the work.
I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Lytham. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?
Most houses in Lytham are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Lytham so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Lytham conveyancing practitioner and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.
Lytham Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should consider before Purchasing
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How many years are left on the lease? Make sure you investigate if there are any onerous restrictions in the lease. By way of example it is reasonably common in Lytham leases that pets are not permitted in in a block in Lytham. If you love the propertyin Lytham however your cat can’t live with you then you have a very hard compromise. On the whole the outlay for major works are not incorporated into the maintenance charges, albeit that some managing agents in Lytham ask leasehold owners to pay into a sinking fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for larger works.