The owners of the house we are hoping to buy have instructed a conveyancing firm in Oadby who has insisted on a lock out contract with a non-refundable deposit two thousand pounds. Are such agreements sensible?
There are two primary downsides with executing a lock out agreement (sometimes known as an exclusivity agreement) is that it can distract from making progress with the conveyancing process, so unless it requires limited or no negotiation then it may turn out to be a cause of frustration and delay. It is not particularly popular amongst Oadby conveyancing solicitors as a result. A further concern is the extent of the remedies available - an aggrieved purchaser should not expect to be granted an injunction to prohibit the vendor disposing of the property to a third party, so the only remedy open via the agreement will be the recovery of wasted costs and, in rare situations, the additional payment of damages.
In reviewing moneysavingexpert.com for a cheap solicitor in Oadby, most say that I must use a CQS assured solicitor. Can you explain what CQS is?
Oadby Conveyancing Quality Scheme solicitors have been granted certification by the law Society The Law Society established CQS to establish evidence of quality standards in the home buying process. CQS enables house movers to recognise solicitor firms who provide a quality residential conveyancing. Oadby is one of locations in England and Wales in which accredited firms are based. The conveyancing scheme requires practices to undergo a strict assessment, compulsory training, self-certification, random audits and yearly assessments in order to maintain CQS status. It is available to solicitors and not licensed conveyancers and has the support of the Association of British Insurers.
We had chosen conveyancing lawyers locally in Oadby on the Skipton solicitor approved list. They are now charging me a further fee for dealing with the Skipton mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by Skipton?
As unfair as it may appear, as long as it’s in their Terms of Engagement or estimate then yes your conveyancing practitioner is entitled to levy a fee for this. This charge is not dictated by Skipton but by your Oadby lawyer. Numerous firms on the Skipton panel will charge ’dealing with mortgage’ fee but many practices incorporate it on their overall fee.
Planning on purchasing a maisonette in Oadby. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Building Society if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the RBS conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Oadby lawyer is on the RBS conveyancing panel.
I've digested plenty of mortgage guides, I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Oadby solicitor - who is on the UBS conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. is that correct?
UBS will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually UBS will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Oadby surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a property I have offered on a fortnight ago in what was supposed to be a straight forward, no chain conveyancing. Oadby is the location of the property. Is there any advice you can impart?
Flying freeholds in Oadby are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Oadby you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Oadby may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.
I today plan to offer on a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Oadby. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?
The majority of houses in Oadby are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Oadby so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Oadby conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the landlord’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your lawyer will advise you fully on all the issues.
I am the registered owner of a ground floor flat in Oadby, conveyancing formalities finalised in 1995. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Oadby with a long lease are worth £181,000. The ground rent is £55 invoiced every year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2075
You have 51 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £30,400 and £35,200 plus costs.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously 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.
The conveyancers handling our conveyancing in Oadby has forwarded documents to review that reveal that the property is unregistered with epitome documents. Why is the property not currently recorded at the Land Registry?
It is a rare occurrence indeed to find property in Oadby to be unregistered. An 'epitome' is basically a dossier of photocopies of documents affecting an unregistered title. Many Oadby conveyancing lawyers should be capable of dealing with such matters but in the event that uncertainty exists the conventional proposition these days is for the current owners to undertake the registration formalities first and subsequently deal with the dispose of the property to the purchaser - this no doubt cause a significant delay.