The Stokesley conveyancing firm that just started acting on my house acquisition in Stokesley have suddenly closed. I chose them because I needed a solicitor on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel and my previous Stokesley lawyer was not. I wrote them a cheque for £250 in advance. What are my options?
If you have an estate agent involved then inform them straight away so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Most sellers would be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers should be in a position to help.
I used Action Conveyancing several years past for my conveyancing in Stokesley. I now require my file however the law firm has closed. What do I do?
You should contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Stokesley of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously hired, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
How does conveyancing in Stokesley differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build residence in Stokesley contact us having been asked by the seller to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is completed. This is because house builders in Stokesley tend to acquire the real estate, 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 conveyancers 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 accustomed to new build conveyancing in Stokesley or who has acted in the same development.
Given that I will soon spend over three hundred thousand on 3 bedroom house in Stokesley I would like to have a conversation with the solicitor regarding thehouse move ahead of giving the go ahead to the firm. Is this something that you can arrange?
Absolutely - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you liaising with the lawyer who will be carrying out your conveyancing in Stokesley.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is unique individual, not a case number. The law firms that we put you in touch with believe that the figure you are provided with for your conveyancing in Stokesley should be the amount on the final invoice that you are charged.
Last July I purchased a leasehold property in Stokesley. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?
Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.
If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).
I bought a 2 bed flat in Stokesley, conveyancing having been completed April 2002. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding properties in Stokesley with a long lease are worth £180,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease ceases on 21st October 2083
With just 58 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to span between £22,800 and £26,400 plus legals.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.