My fiance and I are hoping to purchase a flat in Chalk Farm and have instructed a Chalk Farm conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our conveyancer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. TSB have this evening contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Chalk Farm solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?
If you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is conventional for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent 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 mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Chalk Farm lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
We have very pushy sellers who has insisted on a preliminary agreement with a down payment two thousand pounds. Is it wise to enter into such agreements?
This form of contract is not the norm in Chalk Farm, conveyancers are not keen on them as they detract from the primary focus, namely conveyancing and if you end up having your deposit forfeited then the lawyer at best left with an upset client and at worst a litigious one. In addition, there is no assurance that just because the seller has executed an exclusivity contract they will complete the sale with you. They may be in contravention of the contract if they receive a large enough financial inducement to do so because a wronged purchaser with the benefit of a lockoutcontract will still be legally obliged to show losses as a consequence of the breach and these may not equalise the financial upside that your seller may gain by breaking the contract, however morally unworthy the behaviour is.
I need some fast conveyancing in Chalk Farm as I am under an ultimatum to complete inside one month. A mortgage is not required. Is it possible to avoid the conveyancing searches to save fees and time?
As you are are a mortgage free purchaser you are at free not to do searches although no conveyancer would advise that you don't. Drawing on years of experience of conveyancing in Chalk Farm the following are instances of what can be revealed and adversely affect future saleability: Enforcement Actions, Outstanding Charges, Overdue Grants, Unadopted Roads,...
Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £245,000 and identified one round the corner in Chalk Farm I like with open areas and station in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 52 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Chalk Farm in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?
Should you need a home loan the shortness of the lease may be an issue. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you may ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer concerning this.
In what way does the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 impact my business property in Chalk Farm and how can your lawyers assist?
The particular law that you refer to gives security of tenure to business leaseholders, granting the a statutory right to make a request to court for a continuation of occupancy when the lease reaches an end. There are limited grounds where a landlord can refrain from granting a lease renewal and the rules are involved. Fees are different for commercial conveyancing. Chalk Farm is one of our numerous areas of the UK in which our lawyers are located