My partner and I are refinancing our flat in Hampton Hill with Co-operative. We have a son approaching twenty who lives at home. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who reside at the property. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the property is forfeited by the lender. I have two questions (1) Is this document specific to the Co-operative conveyancing panel as he did not need 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 Co-operative 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 Co-operative. This is solely used to protect Co-operative 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 Co-operative 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.

I had intended to instruct a property lawyer in Hampton Hill for our house move. Our broker has since advised us that our mortgage lenders Aldermore won't deal with them. Surely this is unfair competition?

Lenders on the whole restrict either the category or the number of conveyancing practices on their member panel. A common example of such restriction(s) being that a firm must not be a sole practitioner. As well as restricting the type of firm, some have limited the number of solicitor practices they allow to act for them. You should note that Aldermore have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any member of Aldermore Conveyancer Panel. Mortgage fraud was a key driver in the rationalisation of solicitor panels a few years ago even though there are differing views about the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Data from the Land Registry reveal that plenty of law firms, including some in or near Hampton Hill only perform very few conveyances a year.

Have completed on a a semi-detached house in Hampton Hill , What is the estimated time for the Land Registry to deal with the formalities evidencing my ownership? My Hampton Hill conveyancing solicitor works at snail pace, so I want to be certain the land registry aspects are addressed.

As far as conveyancing in Hampton Hill registration is no quicker or slower than the rest of the country. Rather than based on location, timeframes can differ subject to the party submitting the application, whether there are errors and if the Land registry must send notices to any interested parties. As of today approximately three quarters of such applications are completed within 12 days but some can be subject to protracted delays. Historically registration is effected once the new owner is living at the property therefore an expedited registration is not typically top priority but where it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your lawyers must speak with the land registry and explain the circumstances.

Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £235,500 and identified one close by in Hampton Hill I like with a park and station in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 52 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Hampton Hill suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a lease with such few years left?

Should you require a mortgage that many years will likely be problematic. Reduce the price by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the property for a minimum of twenty four months you could request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer about this matter.

Can a conveyancer remove someone from the title of my property in Hampton Hill ?

Extracting or adding someone to the title of your property is relatively straightforward. You’ll need to appoint a property lawyer to discuss your legal rights before you can proceed with a transfer of property. Contact us to book a free consultation with one a lawyer