My wife and I are buying a 3 bedroom apartment in New Malden with a mortgage. We like our New Malden lawyer, but the bank says he's not on their "panel". It appears that we have no choice but to use one of the bank panel solicitors or retain our New Malden solicitor as well as pay for one of their panel firms to represent them. This seems very unfair; are we not able to require that the lender use our New Malden conveyancing practitioner ?
Unfortunately,no. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your New Malden conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
I own a freehold premises in New Malden but nevertheless invoiced for rent, why is this and what is this?
It’s unusual for properties in New Malden and has limited impact for conveyancing in New Malden but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.
Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges date back many centuries, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the establishment of fresh rentcharges post 1977.
Previous rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence in 2037 will be dispensed with completely.
I just bought a property at auction in New Malden. Conveyancing is needed. What are my next steps?
Given that you have now for in every practical sense signed on the dotted line you should find a conveyancing practitioner soon as you will have a tight a drop dead date to complete the deal. Every auction property will ordinarily have a corresponding auction set of papers. This will include most,if not all of the documents that your conveyancer will need. In the case of leasehold property the conveyancing papers may include a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and other conveyancing paperwork pertinent to leasehold premises. You must hand this to the lawyer working for you at the earliest opportunity. You also need to ensure that your finances are organised to complete on the date specified in the contract.
When it comes to lenders such as Santander, do New Malden lawyers have to pay a yearly amount to be on the conveyancing panel?
We are unaware of any bank fees to be on their panel, although some do levy an administration fee to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel submission.
is it true that all New Malden solicitor practices on the Aldermore conveyancing panel are overseen by the SRA?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the Aldermore conveyancing panel they would need to be overseen by the SRA. Many banks do allow licenced conveyancers on their panel and in such a situation the organisation would be overseen by the CLC.
I note that there are debates on Chancel Insurance on online forums. Do I require chancel insurance when purchasing a residence in New Malden? or Apparently there is a law dating back centuries that means some homeowners residing in a parish church boundary may be liable to contribute towards repairs towards the chancel in proximity to the church. Is this applicable for conveyancing in New Malden?
Unless a prior acquisition of the premises completed after 12 October 2013 you can expect conveyancing practitioners delivering conveyancing in New Malden to remain encouraging a chancel search and or insurance against a claim.
Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden flat in New Malden. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed, but I have just received a half-yearly service charge demand – what should I do?
It best that you pay the maintenance contribution as normal because all ground rent and maintenance payments should be apportioned as part of the financial calculations for completion monies, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice 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.
Having spent years of correspondence we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in New Malden. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?
if there is a missing freeholder or if there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant statutes it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to determine the premium.
An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a New Malden residence is Flat D 15 Claremont Gardens in September 2013. TheTribunal determined in accordance with section48 and Schedule13 of the Leasehold Reform,Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 that the premium for the extended lease should be fourteen thousand one hundred and eighty seven pounds (£14,187.00) This case was in relation to 1 flat.
We have an offer in principle from The Royal Bank of Scotland who said that they will lend up to £218k. When do we need to instruct a solicitor for conveyancing? New Malden is where we are buying.
It would be wise to instruct a lawyer now requesting that they open a file for you. This will facilitate: 1) the estate agent to issue a Sales Memo to all parties 2) the seller’s lawyer to send out the draft agreement. That being said, do not instruct your conveyancing practitioner to order searches until you have your valuation report via The Royal Bank of Scotland and you are willing to proceed.