Our grandson is purchasing a house that has just been built in Rusholme with a mortgage from Skipton. His conveyancer has advised him of a delay in receiving the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. This document is news to me - what is it and who needs sight of it?

The form is intended to provide information to the main parties engaged in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Skipton conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Skipton conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.

I am purchasing a garden flat in Rusholme. How practical is it for me to do the conveyancing?

Leaving aside the complexities and merits of DIY conveyancing in Rusholme you will have to appoint a solicitor on your mortgage company's conveyancing panel to look after their interests. Most people therefore find it easier to let the solicitor act for them and the lender. Furthermore there is minimal cost savings to be made in you doing conveyancing for yourself and another lawyer conducting the conveyancing for the lender. Please feel free to use the search tool to find a lawyer on your lender panel in Rusholme.

I am assisting my niece sell her house in Rusholme. Will the conveyancing solicitor order an energy performance certificate or it is for the owner to coordinate?

Following the demise of Home Information Packs, EPC’s was maintained a mandatory part of selling a property. An energy performance certificate should be to hand prior to the property being marketed. It is not something that conveyancers normally arrange. Where you are using a Rusholme conveyancing lawyer they may help arrange EPC’s due to their contacts with long established local providers

This question may be naive but I am unexperienced as a first time buyer of a garden flat in Rusholme. Do I receive the keys to the house on the completion date from my lawyer? If this is the case, I will appoint a local conveyancing solicitor in Rusholme?

On the day of completion you do not need to go to the conveyancers office in Rusholme. Your solicitors will transfer the completion advance to the owner’s lawyers, and once they have received this, you should be called to pick up the keys from the Estate Agents and move into your new home. Usually this occurs between 1 and 3pm.

I am buying a property in Rusholme. One unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Solicitors conducting should look into this right? Will my lender Nationwide be concerned?

Given that your lender is Nationwide your lawyer must comply with the conveyancing instructions set out in Section 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Nationwide. The CML Handbook sets out minimum specifications for solar panel roof-space leases, and lawyers are required to report to Nationwide where a lease does not meet these provisions. The conditions relate to the installation of panels on properties nationwide and is not isolated to Rusholme.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified during conveyancing in Rusholme?

Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Rusholme. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

My wife and I may need to rent out our Rusholme ground floor flat temporarily due to a career opportunity. We instructed a Rusholme conveyancing firm in 2004 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Rusholme conveyancing solicitor is not around you can check your lease to see if you are permitted to let out the apartment. The rule is that if the lease is silent, subletting is allowed. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to obtain consent from your landlord or some other party before subletting. The net result is you not allowed to sublet in the absence of prior consent. The consent should not be unreasonably withheld. If the lease prohibits you from subletting the property you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Rusholme - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

It is important to be aware if a new roof is being put on or some other major work is coming up to be shared between the leaseholders and could well dramatically increase the the service costs or require a one off invoice. Many Rusholme leasehold flats will have a service bill for maintenance of the building levied on behalf of the management company. If you buy the flat you will have to meet this liability, usually quarterly accross the year. This can vary from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large common areas. In all probability there will be a rentcharge to be met yearly, normally this is not a exorbitant figure, say around £25-£75 but you need to enquire as sometimes it could be prohibitively expensive. What is the name of the managing agents?