My solicitor has discovered a defect with the lease for the flat we are purchasing in Manchester. The seller’s lawyers have put forward defective title insurance as a workaround. We are content with insurance and will pay for it. Our conveyancer says that he must be satisfied that the lender is willing to move forward with this solution. Are we the client or is the bank?
Regardless of the fact that you have a mortgage offer from the mortgage company does not mean to say that the property will meet their provisions for the purposes of a mortgage. Your lawyer has to ensure that the lease has to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions. You and the bank are the client. The appropriate lender specifications must be adhered to.
Are the Manchester conveyancing solicitors identified as being on the Co-operative conveyancing panel, together with their details provided by Co-operative?
Manchester conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Co-operative conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Co-operative directly.
Do the Building Society Association intend to launch a search tool with a view to to identify practices on the Norwich and Peterborough Building Society conveyancing panel for instance in Manchester?
Lexsure has not been advised of any intention on the part of the BSA to promote such a search facility.
is it true that all Manchester conveyancing solicitors on the TSB conveyancing panel are regulated by the SRA?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the TSB approved list of solicitors they would need to be governed by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. Some banks do allow licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such firms would be regulated by the CLC.
We previously instructed conveyancing lawyers based in Manchester on the Leeds Building Society solicitor panel. They have just billed me an additional fee for the legal aspects of the Leeds Building Society mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee set by Leeds Building Society?
As unfair as it may appear, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your property lawyer may charge a fee for this. This fee is not dictated by Leeds Building Society but by your Manchester lawyer. Plenty of firms on the Leeds Building Society panel will quote an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.
I've read lots 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 Manchester solicitor - who is on the Lloyds conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. is that correct?
Lloyds will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Lloyds 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 conveyancer 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 Manchester postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Lloyds, you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Manchester.
I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £235,500 and identified one near me in Manchester I like with a park and railway links in the vicinity, the downside is that it only has 52 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Manchester for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?
Should you need a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term may be problematic. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you can request that they start the process of the extension and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer about this.
I have just started marketing my ground floor flat in Manchester. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed, but I have recently received a quarterly service charge demand – Do I pay up?
Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the invoice as you normally would because all rents and maintenance invoices will be allotted on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.
I invested in buying a 1st floor flat in Manchester, conveyancing having been completed 3 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar flats in Manchester with over 90 years remaining are worth £211,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease finishes on 21st October 2093
With just 68 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as professional fees.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.