Do banks and building societies provide you with an approved list of Mousehole conveyancing solicitors? How do you know who is on the Barclays conveyancing panel?
Mousehole conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Barclays conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Barclays directly.
I have a mortgage with Nottingham for my property in Mousehole. Conveyancing was finalised months ago. Should I wish to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Nottingham?
You must advise Nottingham prior to letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Nottingham’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Nottingham directly. You need not do this via a Nottingham conveyancing panel solicitor.
It is not clear whether my bank obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have called my Mousehole building society branch on a couple of occasions and was told they are content with the situation and they will lend. My Mousehole conveyancing solicitor - who is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel- called and was told they will not lend in accordance with their specific requirements. Who do I believe?
Provided that the conveyancer is on the mortgage company panel, they must comply with the CML Handbook specifications for the bank. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the mortgage company will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the bank to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
At last I have had an offer on an apartment in Mousehole accepted, but there is a chain. The sellers have offered on a flat, however it’s not been accepted yet, and are looking at other flats in the pipeline. I have selected a bricks and mortar conveyancing solicitor in Mousehole. What do I do now? At what stage should I apply for the mortgage with Barclays?
It is normal to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket too early (mortgage application is in the region of £1k, then survey, Mousehole conveyancing search fees, etc). The first course of action is to check that your solicitor is on the Barclays approved list. Concerning the next steps this very much dictated by the circumstances of your case, desire for this property and on the state of the market. In a buoyant market the majority of home buyers would apply for a home loan with Barclays and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they ask their solicitor to move forward with the conveyancing in Mousehole.
My relative suggested that where I am buying in Mousehole I should ask my conveyancer to perform a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
A search of this type is sometimes quoted for as part of the standard Mousehole conveyancing searches. It is a large report of about 40 pages, listing and detailing important information about Mousehole around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime statistics, Local Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data regarding Mousehole.
I am looking for a ground for flat up to £305k and found one near me in Mousehole I like with amenity areas and station nearby, the downside is that it's only got 61 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Mousehole for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a short lease?
If you need a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term may be an issue. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current proprietor has owned the property for at least twenty four months 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 current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer regarding this.
I have been advised by three or four local property agents in Mousehole to select a conveyancer on your site. Is there a financial inducement for Estate Agents to promote your services ahead of another?
We don’t offer any financial incentive for directing people our way. We thought it would be too underhand to pay a commission as members of the public would think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not receiving any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.
I work for a long established estate agent office in Mousehole where we have experienced a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Mousehole conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension process for the buyer?
As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.
An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.
I purchased a 2 bed flat in Mousehole, conveyancing was carried out 3 years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Mousehole with a long lease are worth £195,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 levied per year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2087
You have 63 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to span between £16,200 and £18,600 as well as professional fees.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.