My husband and I are planning to buy a 3 bedroom flat in Ipswich with a mortgage. We wish to retain our Ipswich solicitor, but the bank advise he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the bank panel firms or continue with our Ipswich lawyer as well as pay for one of their panel firms to act for them. This seems very unfair; is there anything we can do?
No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’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 Ipswich conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
Do conveyancers ask for money on account when it comes to conveyancing in Ipswich?
Where you are retaining lawyers for conveyancing in Ipswich your solicitor will ask you to provide them with monies to cover the search fees. This will be the total of the cost of the Local Authority Search. When the deposit is payable against the sale price then this should be required shortly prior to exchange of contracts. Any further balance that is needed should be transferred a few days ahead of the day of completion.
I have a semi-detached Victorian house in Ipswich. Conveyancing practitioner represented me and Skipton Building Society. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and I saw two entries: the first freehold, another for leasehold under the exact same property. Is it worth asking Skipton Building Society to clarify?
You need to 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 Ipswich and other locations in 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 lenders. You can also enquire as to the position with your conveyancing lawyer who conducted the conveyancing.
Am I better off to use a Ipswich conveyancing solicitor who is local to the property I am buying? I have an old university friend who can conduct the legal formalities however his firm is located approximately 350kilometers away.
The benefit of a high street Ipswich conveyancing firm is that you can visit the firm to execute paperwork, deliver your identification documents and apply pressure on them if necessary. They will also have local knowledge which is a plus. However nothing is more important than finding someone that will do a good and efficient job. If you know people who instructed your friend and the majority were impressed that must trump using an unfamiliar Ipswich conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being local.
I am employed by a busy estate agency in Ipswich where we have witnessed a number of flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Ipswich conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the seller 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.
An alternative approach is 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 purchaser.
I invested in buying a studio flat in Ipswich, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable flats in Ipswich with over 90 years remaining are worth £206,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced annually. The lease terminates on 21st October 2092
You have 67 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £10,500 and £12,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.