We are purchasing a flat in March. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a solicitor? At some point we have to deposit money into their account. What protection do we have from them run away with our money?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
This question may be naive but I am wet behind the ears as a first time purchaser of a two bedroom flat in March. Do I receive the keys to the premises on the completion date from my solicitor? If so, I will instruct a High Street conveyancing solicitor in March?
On the day of completion you will not be required to go to the conveyancers office in March. Your solicitors will arrange to send the purchase money to the owner’s solicitors, and once they have received this, you should be invited to receive the keys from the property Agents and move into your new home. This tends to happen early afternoon.
Having digested plenty of mortgage guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local March 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. You may wish to consider appointing your own March surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
Various web forums that I have visited warn that are the main cause of stalling in March house deals. Is this right?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) published conclusions of research by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature within the most frequent causes of hindrances during the legal transfer of property. Searches are not likely to be the root cause of delay in conveyancing in March.
five months have gone by following my purchase conveyancing in March took place. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £175,000 when infact I paid £180,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the premises from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
I am buying a new build apartment in March. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build conveyancing.
Here is a sample of a few leasehold new build enquiries that you should expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in March
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If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. Will the freehold then be transferred for a nominal consideration (not exceeding £100) to the Management Company? The Lease must contain a provision on behalf of the Vendor to pay the service charges in respect of unoccupied units in order to ensure that all services can be provided. Please supply a car parking plan. Please provide evidence that the form of Lease proposed has been approved by the Land Registry.
I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £235,500 and identified one close by in March I like with a park and station nearby, however it only has 49 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in March for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?
If you require a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be problematic. Discount the price by the amount the 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 could request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this matter.
To what extent are March conveyancing solicitors under an obligation to the Law Society to publish clear conveyancing figures?
Contained within the Solicitors Code of Conduct are prescriptive rules and regulations as to how the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) allow solicitors to publicise their fees to clients.The Law Society have practice note giving advice on how to publicise transparent charges to avoid breaching any such rule. Practice notes are not legal advice issued by the Law Society and is not intended as the only standard of good practice a conveyancing solicitor should adhere to. The Practice Note does, nevertheless, represent the Law Society’s perspective of acceptable practice for publicising conveyancing charges, and accordingly it’s a recommended read for any solicitor or conveyancer in March or beyond.