I require conveyancing for an apartment in a fairly new development (seven years built) in Wimbledon. 95% of the flats are already disposed of. Do I need carry out the conveyancing searches for my conveyancing in Wimbledon?
You would be putting yourself at risk in failing carrying out Wimbledon conveyancing searches. Without searches you have no clarity over flooding, environmental etc which may mean you walk away due to potential problems down the line. If you are buying mortgage free there is no legal requirement to have them, but we would seriously advise in the strongest possible terms that your solicitor conducts them. Where accelerating the process and expenses are top of your issues you should discuss with your conveyancer about the options such as contingency insurance available to you
Is there a reason why leasehold purchase conveyancing in Wimbledon is more expensive?
Wimbledon leasehold conveyancing transactions usually involve additional investigations than freeholds including investigating the Lease, liaising with the Landlord such as serving relevant notices on the Landlord or managing agent, obtaining up-to-date service charge and management information, obtaining Landlord’s consents and reviewing management accounts and formation documents.
My aunt passed away 10 months ago and as sole heir and executor I was left the house in Wimbledon. The house had a relatively small loan left on it of around £5k. I want to have the title changed into my name whilst I re-mortgage to Kent Reliance, pay off the mortgage. Is this allowed?
Given you intend to re-mortgage then Kent Reliance will insist on your using a conveyancer on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel. Here is link to the Land Registry online guidance around what to do when a property owner dies. This will help you to understand the registration process behind changing the details re the registered title. in your case it would appear that you are effectively purchasing the property from the estate. Your Kent Reliance conveyancing panel solicitor pays the new mortgage money into the estate, the estate pays off the old mortgage, the charge is released and you become the owner and the Kent Reliance mortgage is registered as a charge at the Land Registry.
There is lots of information on this site concerning conveyancing in Wimbledon but can you isolate your top tip for selecting the right conveyancer in Wimbledon
We would encourage you not to base your choice on the lowest Wimbledon conveyancing costs illustration. You really do get what you pay for when it comes to conveyancing solicitors. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you know exactly what you’ll have to pay in ahead of the deal.
We are purchasing a 3 bedroom semi in Wimbledon. The intention is to convert the garage to an office at the house.Will the conveyancing process include investigations to ascertain if these alterations were previously refused?
Your property lawyer should check the deeds as conveyancing in Wimbledon can occasionally reveal restrictions in the title documents which prevent categories of alterations or necessitated the consent of another owner. Certain works call for local authority planning permissions and approval under the building regulations. Many locations are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which frequently prevent or affect extensions. You should check these issues with a surveyor ahead of any purchase.
I recently had an offer agreed on an apartment in Wimbledon. My mortgage broker pressured me to appoint their lawyer. I paid an upfront payment of £200. A couple of days later, the lawyer called me embarrassingly acknowledging that they were not on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Kent Reliance panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.
My wife and I own a terraced Georgian house in Wimbledon. Conveyancing lawyer acted for me and Virgin Money. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw two entries: the first freehold, another for leasehold under the matching property. I'd like to know for sure, how can I find out??
You should assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Wimbledon and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with purchasers. You can also enquire as to the position with your conveyancing solicitor who conducted the conveyancing.
How does conveyancing in Wimbledon differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build residence in Wimbledon contact us having been asked by the seller to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the residence is finished. This is because new home sellers in Wimbledon usually purchase the land, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct property lawyers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Wimbledon or who has acted in the same development.