Having spent time scouring consumer advice sites for an online solicitor in Norwich, many advise that I should instruct a CQS assured solicitor. What is CQS?
The Law Society's Conveyancing Quality Scheme is the recognised kitemark for legal experts in the legal transfer of properties, trusted by some of the UK's biggest mortgage companies. In 2011-12 the Conveyancing Quality Scheme was officially recognised by the Legal Ombudsman. CQS is not a scheme offered by the Council of Licensed Conveyancing. Norwich is one of the numerous areas in England and Wales where there are Accredited lawyers.
Forgive me if this question is silly but I am wet behind the ears as a 1st time buyer of a two bedroom flat in Norwich. Do I collect the keys to the house on the completion date from my conveyancer? If this is the case, I will find a High Street conveyancing solicitor in Norwich?
There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Your solicitors will transfer the purchase money to the vendor’s conveyancers, and shortly after the monies have arrived, you should be able to collect the keys from the selling Agents and start moving into the property. This tends to happen between 1 and 3pm.
Is it the case that all Norwich CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors are on the Aldermore conveyancing panel?
A selection of lenders now make use of CQS as the kick off point for Panel approval such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS membership however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. Nevertheless,the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for firms wishing to remain on their approved list of firms.
The mortgage over my property is with Aldermore for my property in Norwich. 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 BTL mortgage or inform Aldermore?
Your original mortgage agreement with Aldermore will provide that you need their approval before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Aldermore’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Aldermore 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 Aldermore directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Aldermore conveyancing panel firm.
Will our solicitor be raising questions about flooding as part of the conveyancing in Norwich.
Flooding is a growing risk for conveyancers dealing with homes in Norwich. There are those who buy a house in Norwich, fully expectant that at some time, it may be flooded. However, leaving to one side the physical destruction, if a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, adequate insurance cover, or sell the property. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.
Solicitors are not best placed to impart advice on flood risk, but there are a various checks that can be initiated by the purchaser or on a buyer’s behalf which should figure out the risks in Norwich. The standard information sent to a buyer’s solicitor (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) contains a standard inquiry of the seller to determine if the property has suffered from flooding. In the event that flooding has previously occurred and is not notified by the seller, then a purchaser may issue a compensation claim as a result of such an misleading answer. A purchaser’s conveyancers will also carry out an enviro search. This should indicate if there is any known flood risk. If so, more detailed inquiries should be initiated.
Due to the guidance of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a property in Norwich ahead of appointing conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold element to the property. The surveyor advised that some mortgage companies will refuse to grant a loan on a flying freehold premises.
It varies from the lender to lender. HSBC has different instructions for example to Halifax. If you e-mail us we can check via the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Norwich. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
Is it best to choose a Norwich conveyancing lawyer who is local to the property I am hoping to buy? An old friend can deal with the conveyancing however her office is 300kilometers drive away.
The primary upside of using a local Norwich conveyancing firm is that you can drop in to execute documents, hand in your ID and pester them where appropriate. They will also have local insight which is a plus. That being said it's more important to get someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If if people you trust used your friend and in the main were happy that must trump using an unknown Norwich conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being Norwich based.
I own a leasehold flat in Norwich. Conveyancing and Virgin Money mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing practitioner in Norwich who previously acted has long since retired. What should I do?
First contact HMLR to make sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. There is no need to incur the fees of a Norwich conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
I am the registered owner of a 2 bed flat in Norwich, conveyancing formalities finalised December 2011. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Norwich with over 90 years remaining are worth £197,000. The ground rent is £55 per annum. The lease runs out on 21st October 2079
With 55 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £31,400 and £36,200 as well as professional fees.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be 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 based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.