My wife and I are hoping to acquire a house in Stockport and are in fact using a Stockport conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our property lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with a view to exchanging next week. HSBC Bank have this morning contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Stockport conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is normal for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Stockport solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
I have given 2 months notice to my current landlord and must leave my rented property in Stockport by 27/10/2026. Conveyancing on my purchase is progressing. Is it possible to complete in three weeks as don't want to have to find short term accommodation?
The normal practice is not to provide notice for your tenancy unless you have exchanged. Assuming that you have not previously done so, speak to your conveyancer and request that they apply pressure on the owners solicitors, try to a target completion date that everyone will aim to achieve
I am the registered owner of a freehold house in Stockport yet charged rent, why is this and what is this?
It’s unusual for properties in Stockport and has limited impact for conveyancing in Stockport but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.
Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges have existed for hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the generation of fresh rentcharges post 1977.
Old rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence in 2037 is to be dispensed with completely.
I am buying a new build flat in Stockport. Conveyancing is necessary evil at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build legal work.
Set out below are examples of a few leasehold new build questions that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Stockport
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Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier? Investor purchasers must be able to freely grant unsecured tenancies at market rents without requiring any consents. The Vendor must covenant to keep unsold units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. Will the freehold then be transferred for a nominal consideration (not exceeding £100) to the Management Company? Where there is an Undertaking being granted there is the risk of forfeiture of the Headlease subject to relief if one or more of the Underlessees are willing to accept the original Head Lessee’s obligations as otherwise relief will be denied to the Underlessees. The only alternatives are the Head Lessor agreeing not to forfeit the Headlease or the Head Lessee guaranteeing to the Underlessees that it will not be in breach of the Headlease.
I was recommended by numerous property agents in Stockport to select a solicitor on your site. What’s the financial advantage for Estate Agents to recommend your site over a competitor’s?
We refuse to give any referral fee for sending work to this site. We thought it would be too underhand a fee as members of the public would think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I getting any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.
Can I establish who is the owner of a house in Stockport?
Assuming that the premises is registered with HMLR, and you have sufficient details of the location of the property, you should be able to see results from the HMLR of the registered owner for a a minimal charge.