Our son-in-law is in the process of securing a house that has just been built in Port Talbot with a home loan from Skipton. His lawyer has advised him of a delay in completing the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. Who needs to receive the form?
The form is intended to provide information to the main parties engaged in the purchase. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Skipton conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Skipton conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
It is is a decade since I bought my property in Port Talbot. Conveyancing solicitors have just been appointed on the sale but I can't locate my title deeds. Will this cause complications?
You need not be too concerned. First the deeds may be retained by the lender or they may be in the possession of the conveyancers who acted in your purchase. Secondly in all probability the property will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you own the property by your conveyancing solicitors obtaining up to date copy of the land registers. The vast majority of conveyancing in Port Talbot relates to registered property but in the unlikely event that your home is not registered it is more problematic but is resolvable.
It has been four months since my purchase conveyancing in Port Talbot took place. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £150,000 when infact I paid £215,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the premises from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
The estate agent has sent us the confirmation of our purchase of a new build flat in Port Talbot. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build legal work.
Here are examples of a selection of leasehold new build enquiries that you should expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Port Talbot
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Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision. The Vendor must covenant to keep unoccupied units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. The Lease must contain a provision on behalf of the Vendor to pay the service charges in respect of unoccupied units in order to ensure that all services can be provided. Please confirm the Lease plans are surveyor prepared.
Helen (my wife) and I may need to sub-let our Port Talbot 1st floor flat temporarily due to a career opportunity. We used a Port Talbot conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?
A small minority of properties in Port Talbot do contain a provision to say that subletting is only allowed with permission. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting permission.
Leasehold Conveyancing in Port Talbot - Sample of Questions you should ask Prior to buying
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Does the lease contain onerous restrictions? You should want to discover as much as possible concerning the company managing the block as they will either make living at the property much simpler or problematic. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you are frequently at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to practical issues like the cleanliness of the common parts. Enquire of other people what they think of them. On a final note, find out the dates that the maintenance charges are due to the relevant party and specifically what you get for your money.
Our lawyer in Port Talbot has identified a a problem with the lease for the flat we are buying in Port Talbot. The other side have offered defective title insurance as a workaround. We are content with insurance and will pay for it. Our solicitor says that as he is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel he must ensure that the lender is happy with this solution. Are we the client or is the mortgage company?
The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the potential for a conflict of interest, you and the mortgage company are the client. A precondition to being on the mortgage company approved panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects will the lease so that the lender can be afforded the opportunity to check with their valuer as to the extent that the value of the property is affected . Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.