My fiance and I changing mortgage lender for our maisonette in Redland with TSB. We have a son approaching twenty who lives with us. Our solicitor requested us to identify any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the apartment is repossessed. I have a couple of concerns (1) Is this document specific to the TSB conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we remortgaged 5 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?
On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to TSB. This is solely used to protect TSB if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of TSB had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
Are the Redland conveyancing solicitors identified as being on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel, together with their details provided by Coventry BS?
Redland conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Coventry BS directly.
Will our solicitor be raising enquiries about flooding during the conveyancing in Redland.
Flooding is a growing risk for conveyancers dealing with homes in Redland. Plenty of people will acquire a house in Redland, completely expectant that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, leaving to one side the physical destruction, if a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, satisfactory building insurance, or dispose of the property. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the buyer.
Lawyers are not qualified to impart advice on flood risk, but there are a number of checks that can be initiated by the buyer or by their lawyers which should give them a better appreciation of the risks in Redland. The conventional set of information supplied to a buyer’s conveyancer (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) contains a usual inquiry of the owner to discover whether the premises has suffered from flooding. If the residence has been flooded in past and is not notified by the seller, then a buyer could issue a compensation claim as a result of such an inaccurate response. The purchaser’s conveyancers will also conduct an enviro report. This should disclose if there is any known flood risk. If so, more detailed investigations will need to be made.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a flat up to £235,500 and identified one near me in Redland I like with amenity areas and station nearby, however it's only got 51 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Redland suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?
Should you need a mortgage the shortness of the lease will be an issue. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the property for a minimum of twenty four months you can ask them to start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer concerning this matter.
Taking into account that I will soon part with hundreds of thousands of pounds on a two bedroom apartment in Redland I wish to have a conversation with the conveyancer about myhome move prior to giving the go ahead to the firm. Can this be arranged?
This is something that we encourage - we would be delighted to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you speaking to the conveyancer who will be doing your property ownership legalities in Redland.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is unique person, not a file reference. The law firms that we put you in touch with believe that the fees you are provided with for residential conveyancing in Redland should be the amount on the final invoice that you are charged.
I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have just found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Redland. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?
The majority of houses in Redland are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Redland so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Redland conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a lessee you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer will report to you on the legal implications.
I invested in buying a 2 bed flat in Redland, conveyancing having been completed September 2005. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Corresponding flats in Redland with over 90 years remaining are worth £190,000. The ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease ceases on 21st October 2084
With only 61 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £19,000 and £22,000 as well as professional fees.
The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.