My partner and I are refinancing our penthouse in Hampstead with Virgin Money. We have a son 18 who lives at home. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the flat is repossessed. I have a couple of concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Virgin Money conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we bought 5 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this compromise his entitlement to inherit the property?
First, rest assured that your Virgin Money conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing 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 Virgin Money. This is solely used to protect Virgin Money 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 Virgin Money 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're in Hampstead, First time buyers purchasing with a mortgage (lender is Principality , and our lawyer is on the Principality conveyancing panel). How long should the conveyancing process take?
The fact that your lawyer is on the Principality conveyancing panel is a help. It would almost certainly delay matters if they were not. However, no conveyancer should guarantee a timeframe for your conveyancing, due to third parties outside of your control such as delays caused by lenders,conveyancing search providers or by the other side’s solicitors. The time taken is often determined by the number of parties in a chain.
This question may be naive but I am unseasoned as FTB of a garden flat in Hampstead. Do I receive the keys to the premises on completion from my solicitor? If this is the case, I will appoint a local conveyancing solicitor in Hampstead?
On the day of completion you do not need to attend the conveyancers office in Hampstead. Conveyancing lawyers for you will transfer the purchase money to the vendor’s solicitors, and shortly after the monies have arrived, you will be able to collect the keys from the Estate Agents and move into your new home. Usually this occurs between 1 and 3pm.
I am currently in the process of buying my council flat in Hampstead. I have a mortgage agreed with HSBC. Conveyancing is new to me. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should have one. Any advice?
It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with HSBC, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the HSBC conveyancing panel.
I have finally had an offer on a flat in Hampstead accepted, but there is a chain. The owners have put an offer on somewhere, however it’s not been accepted yet, and are looking at other apartments booked. I have instructed a bricks and mortar conveyancing solicitor in Hampstead. What should be my next step? At what stage should I apply for the mortgage with Nottingham?
It is understandable to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket prematurely (mortgage application is approx one thousand pounds, then valuation, Hampstead conveyancing search charges, etc). First, you should check that your solicitor is on the Nottingham approved list. Regarding the subsequent phase this very much depends on the uniqueness of your transaction, attraction to the property and on the state of the market. During a rising market the majority of purchasers will apply for a home loan with Nottingham and arrange for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they pay their conveyancing practitioner to proceed with the conveyancing in Hampstead.
We are planning on selling our home in Hampstead and according to the buyers it appears that there is a possibility that the property was constructed land that was not decontaminated. A high street Hampstead lawyer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers instructed a web based conveyancing outfit as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Hampstead. Having lived in Hampstead for many years we know that this is a non issue. Is it a good idea to get in touch with our local Authority to seek clarification that the buyers are looking for.
It would appear that you have a conveyancing lawyer already. What do they say? You must enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same sickness)
I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I put an offer in last month in what should have been a quick, chain free conveyancing. Hampstead is the location of the property. Can you shed any light on this issue?
Flying freeholds in Hampstead are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Hampstead you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds very carefully. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Hampstead may ascertain that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.