My partner and I are looking to buy a property in Old Oak Common and have appointed a Old Oak Common conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our solicitor has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Old Oak Common solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?

When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender. 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 Quality 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 don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Old Oak Common solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.

Will my conveyancer be raising questions about flooding during the conveyancing in Old Oak Common.

Flooding is a growing risk for solicitors conducting conveyancing in Old Oak Common. There are those who acquire a house in Old Oak Common, completely aware that at some time, it may be flooded. However, aside from the physical destruction, where a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, satisfactory building insurance, or sell the property. There are steps that can be taken during the course of a property purchase to forewarn the purchaser.

Solicitors are not qualified to offer advice on flood risk, however there are a numerous checks that may be carried out by the buyer or on a buyer’s behalf which should give them a better understanding of the risks in Old Oak Common. The conventional set of completed inquiry forms given to a buyer’s lawyer (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) includes a standard question of the seller to determine if the premises has ever been flooded. In the event that the residence has been flooded in past and is not revealed by the vendor, then a buyer could commence a compensation claim resulting from an misleading response. The purchaser’s solicitors should also commission an enviro search. This should indicate whether there is a recorded flood risk. If so, additional inquiries will need to be initiated.

I am purchasing a new build house in Old Oak Common with the aid of help to buy. The builders would not reduce the amount so I negotiated 6k of additionals instead. The sale representative advised me not to tell my conveyancer about this deal as it will impact my loan with the bank. Is this normal?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer 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.

I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold element on a property I put an offer in a fortnight ago in what should have been a straight forward, no chain conveyancing. Old Oak Common is the location of the property. Can you shed any light on this issue?

Flying freeholds in Old Oak Common are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Old Oak Common you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Old Oak Common 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.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a two maisonettes in Old Oak Common which have approximately forty five years left on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease shortens the value of the lease deteriorates and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. More often than not it is difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease because mortgage lenders may be unwilling to lend money on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Old Oak Common - Examples of Queries before buying

It is important to be aware if changing the roof or some other significant cost is coming up to be shared amongst the leaseholders and may well materially increase the the service fees or necessitate a one off invoice. How many years remain on the lease? Where a Old Oak Common lease has less than 80 years it will affect the value of the apartment. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will probably have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering what this will be. For most Old Oak Commonlease extensions you will be be obliged to have owned the premises for two years before you are eligible to carry out a lease extension.