We're in Wem, FTBs purchasing with a mortgage (lender is Santander , and our lawyer is on the Santander conveyancing panel). How long should the conveyancing process take?
The fact that your lawyer is on the Santander conveyancing panel is a help. It would almost certainly delay matters if they were not. However, no conveyancer should guarantee a timeframe for your conveyancing, due to third parties outside of your control such as delays caused by lenders,conveyancing search providers or by the other side’s solicitors. The time taken is often determined by the number of parties in a chain.
A colleague advised me that where I am buying in Wem I should ask my conveyancer to carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?
This is a search is usually included in the estimate for your Wem conveyancing searches. It is a large report of about 40 pages, listing and setting out important information about Wem around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime statistics, Local Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data regarding Wem.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified during conveyancing in Wem?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Wem. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
I need to appoint a conveyancing solicitor for freehold conveyancing in Wem. I happened to chance upon a site which appears to be the perfect solution If there is a chance to get all this stuff done via phone that would be ideal. Do I need to be wary? What should out be looking out for?
As usual with these online conveyancers you need to read ALL the small print - did you notice the extra charge for dealing with the mortgage?
I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Wem where we see a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Wem conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the buyer?
Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.
Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.
I invested in buying a 2 bed flat in Wem, conveyancing formalities finalised August 2011. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Comparable properties in Wem with over 90 years remaining are worth £192,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 invoiced annually. The lease terminates on 21st October 2078
You have 54 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £32,300 and £37,400 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.
The lawyers carrying out our conveyancing in Wem has forwarded documents to review that indicate that the land is unregistered with epitome documents. Why is the property not currently recorded at HM Land Regsitry?
The majority of property in Wem is registered. An 'epitome' is basically a dossier of photocopies of documents affecting an unregistered title. Plenty of Wem conveyancing practitioners should be familiar with such matters but if any uncertainty reigns the usual recommendation nowadays is for the current owners to deal with the registration formalities first and subsequently deal with the dispose of the property to the purchaser - this can though naturally cause a significant delay.