What is your number one tip for finding a conveyancing solicitor in New Forest
It would be unwise to be tempted by the cheapest New Forest conveyancing fees. You really do get what you’re paying for when it comes to property lawyers. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you know exactly what you’ll have to pay in ahead of the deal.
I happen to be the sole recipient of my late father’s will and I have everything in my name alone, including the my former home in New Forest. Conveyancing formalities meant that the Land Registry date was in September. I want to move. I understand that there is a CML six month 'rule', which means that my property ownership will be regarded the same way as if I'd bought the house in September. Will no one buy the property for half a year?
The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook requires conveyancers to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you might be caught by that. How sensible a view mortgage companies take of it, depend on the bank as this obligation is chiefly there to pick up on the purchase and immediately sell or the flipping of property.
I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Coventry BS. I assume I don't need a New Forest solicitor on the Coventry BS panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?
If you have finished paying off your Coventry BS mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Coventry BS mortgage from the register. Coventry BS, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Coventry BS has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Coventry BS has instructed the Land Registry to do so
The deeds to my house are lost. The conveyancers who conducted the conveyancing in New Forest 5 years ago are no longer around. What are my next steps?
You no longer need to hold title original deeds to establish that you own the land or premises, given that the Land Registry have everything they need in a digital format.
I am purchasing a new build house in New Forest with a mortgage from Santander. The developers would not move on the price so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The estate agent suggested that I not inform my solicitor about this extras as it could impact my loan with the lender. Is this normal?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
Due to the input of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in New Forest before retaining lawyers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. Our surveyor advised that some lenders may not grant a mortgage on such a premises.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Bank of Scotland has different requirements for example to Nationwide. If you call us we can check with the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in New Forest. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
I have been recommended by numerous property agents in New Forest to locate a solicitor on your site. What’s the financial inducement for Estate Agents to market your lawyers rather than a competitor’s?
We refuse to make any referral fee for directing people our way. We thought it would be too underhand to pay a commission because a client could think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I getting any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.
I have just started marketing my 2 bed flat in New Forest. Conveyancing is yet to be initiated, however I have recently had a yearly maintenance charge invoice – Do I pay up?
The sensible thing to do is discharge the service charge as normal because all rents and service invoices will be apportioned on completion, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless 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.
New Forest Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to buying
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What prohibitions exist in the New Forest Lease? It would be sensible to discover if there are any onerous prohibitions in the lease. For example it is very common in New Forest leases that pets are not allowed in certain buildings in New Forest. If you like the flatin New Forest but your cat is not allowed to live with you then you will be faced difficult decision. It is important to be aware if redecorating or some other significant cost is pending to be shared by the leaseholders and may well dramatically impact the level of the maintenance costs or result in a one off invoice.