We are planning to acquire a 3 bedroom apartment in West Kirby with a mortgage. We would like to retain our West Kirby lawyer, however the mortgage company says she’s not on their "panel". It seems we have no choice but to select one of the lender panel solicitors or keep our West Kirby property lawyer and pay for one of their panel lawyers to act for them. We regard this is unjust; can we not demand that the lender use our West Kirby conveyancing practitioner ?
No, not really. 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. Another option that might be available is for your West Kirby conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
My husband and I swapping mortgage lender for our penthouse in West Kirby with Virgin Money. We have a son approaching twenty who lives with us. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose 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 property is forfeited by the lender. I have two concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Virgin Money conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we bought 5 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?
First, rest assured that your Virgin Money conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing 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 Virgin Money. This is solely used to protect Virgin Money 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 Virgin Money 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.
Do the Building Society Association intend to launch a searchable register to list solicitors on the Melton Mowbray Building Society conveyancing panel for example in West Kirby?
We are not aware of any intention on the part of the BSA to promote such a register.
Is it necessary to take out insurance to protect me from financial exposure to chancel repairs when buying a house in West Kirby?
Unless a previous acquisition of the premises completed post 12 October 2013 you may take it that solicitors delivering conveyancing in West Kirby to continue to propose a a chancel search and or chancel repair liability policy.
3 months have elapsed since my purchase conveyancing in West Kirby completed. I have checked the Land Registry website which shows that I paid £200,000 when infact I paid £180,000. 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.
I want to sublet my leasehold apartment in West Kirby. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask her. Is permission from the freeholder required?
A small minority of properties in West Kirby do contain a provision to say that subletting is only allowed with permission. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience suggests 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 consent.
West Kirby Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Questions you should ask before Purchasing
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Its a good idea to find out as much as possible concerning the company managing the building as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you are often in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to day to day matters like the tidiness of the common parts. Enquire of other tenants if they are happy with them. On a final note, investigate as to the dates that the maintenance fees are due to the managing agents and specifically what you get for your money. What is the service charge and ground rent on the property? It would be wise to enquire if the the lease includes any onerous restrictions in the lease. For instance it is reasonably common in West Kirby leases that pets are not allowed in certain buildings in West Kirby. If you love the propertyin West Kirby yet your cat is not allowed to live with you then you have a very difficult determination.