My husband and I are purchasing a 3 bedroom flat in Standish with a mortgage. We wish to retain our Standish solicitor, but the lender says she’s not on their "panel". It appears that we have no option but to use one of the lender panel conveyancing practices or retain our Standish property lawyer as well as pay for one of their panel lawyers to represent them. We consider that this is unjust; is there anything we can do?
Unfortunately,no. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your Standish conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
My wife and I are close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our home in Standish and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a possibility that the property was built on contaminated land. A high street Standish lawyer would know that there is no such problem. It does beg the question why the purchasers instructed a national conveyancing firm rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Standish. We have lived in Standish for 5 years we know that this is a non issue. Is it a good idea to contact our local Authority to get confirmation need.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing firm already. What do they say? You should check with your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same ailment)
I am buying a new build apartment in Standish. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build legal work.
Set out below are examples of a selection of leasehold new build questions that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Standish
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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. There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants. Please supply a car parking plan. If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal.
I am downsizing from my house. My former lawyers have shut. I am in need of a recommendation of a conveyancing firm. I happen to live in Standish if that makes a difference.
Do use our search tool to help you choose a solicitor for your conveyancing in Standish. We have connected thousands of home buyers and sellers with lender approved solicitors to ensure that the legalities of their house move runs with a minimum of fuss.
In my capacity as executor for the will of my grandfather I am selling a property in Monmouth but reside in Standish. My conveyancer (who is 260 miles from mehas requested that I sign a stat dec prior to the transaction finalising. Could you suggest a conveyancing solicitor in Standish to witness this legal document for me?
Technically speaking you are not likely to be required to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily any notary public or solicitor will be fine regardless of whether they are located in Standish
Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Standish from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?
- Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Standish can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers as soon as you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers. If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a flat where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic rather than unresolved. The majority of landlords or Management Companies in Standish charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Standish. You may think that you are aware of the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check via your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is below 80 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale.
Standish Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to buying
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The majority of Standish leasehold apartments will be liable to pay a service charge for the upkeep of the block invoiced on behalf of the management company. If you acquire the flat you will have to meet this charge, normally in instalments throughout the year. This may differ from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built blocks. In all likelihood there will be a ground rent to be met annual, normally this is not a large figure, say around £50-£100 but you should to enquire as occasionally it could be surprisingly expensive. Please note if it is less than eighty years it will impact the value of the apartment. Check with your mortgage company that they are willing to go ahead with the loan given the lease term. A short lease means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you would be required to have been the owner of the premises for two years in order to be eligible to extend the lease. The best form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this situation the leaseholders enjoy being in charge if their destiny and notwithstanding that a managing agent is frequently employed where it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders.