My wife and I are looking to buy a house in Midsomer Norton and have appointed a Midsomer Norton conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our solicitor has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Skipton Building Society have this afternoon contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Midsomer Norton conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?
If you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Midsomer Norton solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
Finally the sale completed on my house in Midsomer Norton last April yet the purchaser is Skype messaging me to moan that their conveyancer needs to hear from mysolicitor. What are the post completion sale formalities now that I have sold?
Following your disposal your lawyer should deliver the transfer documentation and all additional paperwork to the buyer’s conveyancer. Depending on the transaction, your conveyancer should also evidence that the mortgage has been paid off to the purchasers conveyancers. There is unlikely to be post completion steps peculiar conveyancing in Midsomer Norton.
I have an AIP. The lender mentioned the loan came with free conveyancing. Does this mean I have to appoint their panel conveyancer as I would prefer to appoint a high street conveyancing solicitor in Midsomer Norton?
Do check but the the likelihood is that allocate you one of their panel conveyancers should you accept the "fee-free" offer. Call the mortgage company to see if they make available a cash alternative. It is not unheard for a lender to give a £250 cashback as an alternative in which case you could put that amount towards the cost for your conveyancing solicitor in Midsomer Norton.
is it true that all Midsomer Norton solicitors on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel are governed by the SRA?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the Yorkshire BS approved list of solicitors they would need to be regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. Many banks do permit licenced conveyancers on their panel and in that case the practice would be regulated by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
We had instructed conveyancers located in Midsomer Norton on the Co-operative solicitor approved list. They have just billed me a supplemental charge for dealing with the Co-operative mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by Co-operative?
As unfair as it may seem, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your property lawyer may charge a fee for this. This charge is not set by Co-operative but by your Midsomer Norton property lawyer. Plenty of firms on the Co-operative panel will quote an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.
We have agreed to purchase a house in Midsomer Norton. One unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Solicitors conducting should look into this right? Will my lender Nationwide be concerned?
As your lender is Nationwide your lawyer must check the conveyancing instructions outlined in Section 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Nationwide. The CML Handbook stipulates minimum requirements for solar panel roof-space leases, and conveyancers are required to report to Nationwide where a lease does not meet these provisions. The provisions relate to the installation of panels on properties countrywide and is not isolated to Midsomer Norton.
I am attracted to a two maisonettes in Midsomer Norton which have approximately forty five years unexpired on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?
There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Midsomer Norton is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the value of the premises. The majority of purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with less than eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Midsomer Norton conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease. They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.
I own a 1 bedroom flat in Midsomer Norton, conveyancing having been completed 3 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding properties in Midsomer Norton with a long lease are worth £265,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2099
With 75 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £8,600 and £9,800 plus professional fees.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. 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. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.
I bought a flat in Midsomer Norton last 22/3/2023 and to date it is still not recorded with the Land Registry. It was part of a development site and my conveyancer told me that it can take twelve months to complete the registration formalities. I have contacted the Land Registry directly and they have informed me the initial application was cancelled due to questions not being addressed in time. What can I do?
It is your conveyancer that you really need to turn to here in order to satisfy any questions which have arisen as part of the registration formalities for your Midsomer Norton property. Normal Midsomer Norton conveyancing practice includes an undertaking on the part of the previous owner’s conveyancer that they will help resolve any question raised by HMLR so it may be a case of taking action to enforce that undertaking if necessary.