I am 3 weeks into the sale of my apartment in Lytham St Annes and the estate agent has just text me to warn that the buyers are appointing a new law firm. The excuse is that the bank will only work with property lawyers on their approved list. Why would a major lender only deal with specific lawyers rather the firm that they want to select to handle their conveyancing in Lytham St Annes ?
Mortgage companies have always had panels of law firms they are content to work with, but in the last few years big names such as Santander, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for decades.
Lending institutions blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Some are unaware that 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.
The deeds to my property can not be found. The conveyancers who did the conveyancing in Lytham St Annes 5 years ago have long since closed. What are my next steps?
Gone are the days when you need to hold title original deeds to establish that you own the land or premises, given that the Land Registry hold details of all registered land or property electronically.
I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £235,500 and found one close by in Lytham St Annes I like with open areas and railway links nearby, the downside is that it's only got 52 years on the lease. There is not much else in Lytham St Annes for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a lease with such few years left?
Should you require a mortgage that many years may be a potential deal breaker. Discount the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the property for a minimum of 2 years you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer regarding this matter.
I have been advised by numerous property agents in Lytham St Annes to locate a solicitor on your site. Is there a financial inducement for Estate Agents to promote your site rather than a competitor’s?
We refuse to give any referral fee for directing people our way. We found it would be just too difficult to pay a commission because a client could think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I receiving any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.
Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Lytham St Annes from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?
- A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Lytham St Annes can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ solicitors. A minority of Lytham St Annes leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers. If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming formality and slows down many a Lytham St Annes conveyancing transaction. Where a duplicate share is necessary, do contact the company director and secretary or managing agents (if relevant) for this as soon as possible. You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your lawyers. A buyer’s conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is less than 80 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.
I bought a basement flat in Lytham St Annes, conveyancing having been completed December 2010. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Comparable flats in Lytham St Annes with a long lease are worth £206,000. The ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease expires on 21st October 2086
With just 65 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £13,300 and £15,400 as well as legals.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.
We yesterday found out that one of the directors of the solicitors handling the purchase conveyancing in Lytham St Annes is an uncle of the vendor. Is this allowed?
Provided there is no conflict of interest this should be fine. Where you are needing a home loan then the lender may have a say as many banks have specific instructions on this. For example for RBS - Virgin One as of 31/7/2021, the requirements read as follows :