My wife and I are only a couple days away from an exchange on a property in Cranleigh and my parents have transferred the exchange deposit to my conveyancer. I am now advised that as the deposit has been sent from someone other than me my lawyer needs to make a notification to my bank. I am advised that, in also acting for the mortgage company he must inform them that the balance of the purchase price is coming from anyone other than me. I informed the mortgage company about my parents' contribution when I applied for the mortgage, so is it really necessary for this now to delay the deal?
The conveyancer is duty bound to clarify with lender to make sure that they are aware that the balance of the purchase price is not from your own funds. The solicitor can only disclose this to your lender if you agree, failing which, your lawyer must cease to continue acting.
My property lawyer in Cranleigh is not listed on the Skipton Building Society Solicitor Panel. Can I still continue with my prefered solicitor notwithstanding that they are not on the Skipton Building Society panel?
Your options are as follows:
- Carry on with your existing Cranleigh solicitors but Skipton Building Society will need to instruct a conveyancer on their panel. This will result in additional total legal charges and result in frustration.
- Find a new solicitor to to deal with the purchase, remembering to check they are Skipton Building Society approved.
- Persuade your Skipton Building Society solicitor to seek to join the Skipton Building Society panel
In my capacity as executor for the estate of my father I am selling a property in Newport but reside in Cranleigh. My lawyer (approximately 250 miles from meneeds me to execute a stat dec before the transaction finalising. Could you suggest a conveyancing solicitor in Cranleigh who can attest and place their company stamp on the document?
strictly speaking you are unlikely to need to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily any notary public or qualified solicitor will do regardless of whether they are Cranleigh based
Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my ground floor flat in Cranleigh. Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon, but I have just had a yearly service charge invoice – Do I pay up?
The sensible thing to do is discharge the service charge as you normally would because all ground rent and maintenance charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.
I acquired a garden flat in Cranleigh, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2008. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Cranleigh with a long lease are worth £206,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease ends on 21st October 2091
With just 66 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to range between £11,400 and £13,200 plus costs.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.
Builders have put forward a property lawyer and I've sought a quote from them. They are almost £400 cheaper than my preferred Cranleigh conveyancing practitioner. What's the catch?
Builders often have panels of lawyers who expedite matters and who know the builder's documentation and property lawyer. Plenty of developers offer an incentive to select their approved lawyer for this reason, any increased charges can be avoided and a developer won't recommend a conveyancing factory and run the risk of having the conveyancing delayed when they need an exchange in 28 days. A counter-argument for not opting for the suggested conveyancing practitioner is that they may be reluctant to 'push' your interests for fear of upsetting the sellers. If you worry that this may be the situation you should remain with your high street Cranleigh lawyer.