Me and my partner are intending to acquire a 2 bedroom apartment in Tottenham Green with a mortgage. We have a Tottenham Green lawyer, however the mortgage company advise he's not on their "panel". It seems we have little option but to select one of the mortgage company panel firms or retain our Tottenham Green property lawyer and pay for one of their panel firms to act for them. We feel that this is inequitable; are we not able to require that the lender use our Tottenham Green conveyancing practitioner ?
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 Tottenham Green conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
I'm purchasing my first flat in Tottenham Green with a mortgage from Alliance & Leicester . The developers would not reduce the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of fixtures and fittings instead. The estate agent suggested that I not reveal to my lawyer about this extras as it may put at risk my loan with the lender. Is this normal?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
Due to the advice of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Tottenham Green before retaining lawyers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. My surveyor has said that some mortgage companies will refuse to issue a mortgage on this type of property.
It varies from the lender to lender. Bank of Scotland has different instructions from Halifax. Should you wish to call us we can investigate further with the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Tottenham Green. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Tottenham Green especially if they are familiar with such properties in Tottenham Green.
I am attracted to a two apartments in Tottenham Green which have in the region of 50 years remaining on the lease term. Will this present a problem?
There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Tottenham Green is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the salability of the premises. The majority of purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with less than 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Tottenham Green conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease. You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.
My wife and I have hit a brick wall in trying to purchase the freehold in Tottenham Green. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?
Most definitely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Tottenham Green conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement matter before the tribunal for a Tottenham Green residence is 22 Wakefield Road in January 2012. Following a vesting order Clerkenwell and Shoreditch County Court under section 26 of the Leasehold Reform,Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 on 9th May 2011 the Tribunal decided that the price that the Applicant for the freehold interest should pay is £17,400 This case related to 2 flats. The unexpired lease term was 74.13 years.
My nephew is just in the process of moving home, he had his mortgage in principle. When the offer was accepted on house we called the lender to progress the mortgage application. We were disappointed to learn that mortgage lenders do not accept all lawyer, they have to be on a list, is this legal?
Mortgage Companies ordinarily restrict either the type or the number of conveyancing firms on their panel. A common example of such restriction(s) being that a firm must have two or more partners. In addition to restricting the type of firm, some have decided to limit the number of firms they use to represent them. You should note that banks have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any Tottenham Green solicitor on their panel. Mortgage fraud was a key driver in the rationalisation of conveyancing panels a few years ago and whilst there are differing views about the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Statistics from the Land Registry reveal that thousands of law firms only carry out one or two conveyances a year. Those supporting conveyancing panel cuts ask why law firms should have the right to be on a Lender panel when clearly, conveyancing is not their speciality. To put it another way; would you want a conveyancing solicitor to represent you if you were charged with a crime? Probably not.