My wife and I are refinancing our penthouse in Coven with Bank of Ireland. We have a son 19 who lives at home. Our solicitor requested us to identify any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the property is repossessed. I have two concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we remortgaged 3 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?
On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Bank of Ireland. This is solely used to protect Bank of Ireland if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Bank of Ireland had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
We previously chose conveyancers located in Coven on the Skipton solicitor panel. They are now charging me an additional sum for handling the Skipton mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by Skipton?
As unfair as it may seem, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your solicitor may charge a fee for this. This fee is not set by Skipton but by your Coven solicitor. Plenty of firms on the Skipton panel will levy ’dealing with mortgage’ fee but some firms include it on their overall fee.
Can I be sure that the Coven conveyancing solicitor on the Virgin Money panel is any good?
When it comes to conveyancing in Coven obtaining recommendations is a sensible starting point. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one advertising the lowest fees. We would always recommend that you speak with the solicitor conducting your transaction.
I have instructed a Coven conveyancer having checked that they are on the Principality conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
Principality will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Principality will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Coven surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
I'm buying my first flat in Coven benefiting from help to buy. The developers refused to reduce the price so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The house builders rep advised me not inform my conveyancer about this extras as it may adversely affect my loan with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.
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 encouragement of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a property in Coven before instructing lawyers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold element to the property. Our surveyor has said that some banks may not grant a loan on such a property.
It varies from the lender to lender. Santander has different instructions for example to Nationwide. If you e-mail us we can investigate further with the relevant mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Coven. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Coven to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.
My brother has recommend that I use his conveyancers in Coven. Should I find my own conveyancer?
No doubt the best way to find a conveyancing solicitor is to get feedback from friends or family who have actually used the firm you're contemplating using.
What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Coven conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?
When appointing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Coven conveyancing firm) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggest that you make enquires with several firms including non Coven conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions might be useful:
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Can they put you in touch with clients in Coven who can give a testimonial?
I own a garden flat in Coven, conveyancing having been completed 3 years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Coven with an extended lease are worth £197,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 yearly. The lease runs out on 21st October 2081
With 55 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £31,400 and £36,200 as well as legals.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.