It is 10 years ago since I purchased my property in Sittingbourne. Conveyancing solicitors have just been appointed on the sale but I am unable to locate my title documents. Will this cause complications?
Don’t worry too much. Firstly there is a possibility that the deeds will be kept by the mortgage company or they could still be with the solicitor who oversaw the purchase. Secondly the likelihood is that the land will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to prove you own the property by your conveyancing solicitors acquiring current official copies of the land registers. The vast majority of conveyancing in Sittingbourne involves registered property but in the rare situation where your property is not registered it is more of a problem but is resolvable.
Can you clarify what the consequences are if my lawyer’s firm is expelled from the Nottingham Solicitor panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Sittingbourne?
First, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit for a fee.
The deeds to our property can not be found. The solicitors who did the conveyancing in Sittingbourne 4 years ago have long since closed. Will I be able to sell the house?
Assuming the title is registered the details of your ownership will be documented by the Land Registry under a Title Number. It is easy to perform a search at the Land Registry, find your house and secure up to date copies of the property title for a small fee. If the property is Leasehold then the Land Registry will in most cases retain a certified duplicate of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be ordered for a small fee.
I'm buying my first flat in Sittingbourne with a loan from Santander. The sellers refused to budge the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of extras instead. The house builders rep told me not to tell my solicitor about the deal as it will impact my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Sittingbourne. Conveyancing and Nottingham Building Society mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in Sittingbourne who previously acted has long since retired. Any advice?
First make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Sittingbourne conveyancing solicitor to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
Sittingbourne Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should ask Prior to Purchasing
-
It is important to be aware if fixing the lift or some other major work is coming up to be shared amongst the leaseholders and may well dramatically increase the the service fees or require a one time invoice. Most Sittingbourne leasehold flats will incur a service bill for the upkeep of the block levied by the landlord. If you buy the property you will have to pay this liability, usually quarterly accross the year. This may differ from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large common areas. There will also be a rentcharge for you to pay annual, ordinarily this is not a exorbitant amount, say around £25-£75 but you should to enquire it because occasionally it could be surprisingly expensive. Are any of leasehold owners in dispute over their service charge payments?
I pay a maintenance fee for my ground floor flat in Sittingbourne. Due to losing my job and other issues I fell behind with remittance. The freeholders agreed a settlement schedule but there remains a couple of outstanding at the current time.
I want to sell and I am nervous that this may hold me back if I have to pay off the amount due now. I'd like to sell up and then pay them back with the proceeds - is this viable?
You should check with the conveyancer dealing with your Sittingbourne conveyancing but it may be possible to agree for the debt to be passed to the purchasers. The contractual price due would be reduced to reflect the amount of debt they assume. They could then deal with the fees after completion of the sale.