What is the first thing I need to know concerning purchase conveyancing in Woodbridge?

Not many law firms shout this from the rooftops but conveyancing in Woodbridge and elsewhere in England and Wales is an adversarial process. Put another way, when it comes to conveyancing there exists an abundance of room for conflict between you and other parties involved in the transaction. For instance, the seller, estate agent and on occasion the mortgage company. Choosing a lawyer for your conveyancing in Woodbridge an important selection as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the ONLY party in the legal process whose interest is to protect your legal interests and to keep you safe.

We are witnessing a distinct ongoing adversarial element to conveyancing- someone has to be at fault for the process being so protracted. You must always trust your lawyer ahead of all other players when it comes to the legal assignment of property.

We're in Woodbridge, FTBs buying with a mortgage (lender is Aldermore , and our solicitor is on the Aldermore conveyancing panel). How long should the conveyancing process take?

The fact that your lawyer is on the Aldermore 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.

I'm purchasing my first flat in Woodbridge with a loan from Barclays . The developers would not move on the amount so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The house builders rep advised me not disclose to my solicitor about the extras as it may impact my loan with Barclays . Is this normal?.

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

Am I better off to use a Woodbridge conveyancing lawyer based in the location that I am purchasing? We have a good friend who can execute the conveyancing however they are based over three hundred kilometers away.

The primary upside of using a high street Woodbridge conveyancing practice is that you can attend the office to execute paperwork, deliver your ID and apply pressure on them if necessary. Having local Woodbridge know how is a bonus. That being said it's more important to get someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If other friends have used your friend and in the main were happy that must trump using an unknown Woodbridge conveyancing lawyer solely due to them being based in the area.

Last June I purchased a leasehold house in Woodbridge. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

Woodbridge Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before buying

Who manages the building? Best to be warned if window replacement or some other major work is due shortly to be shared by the leaseholders and will materially increase the the service charges or result in a one off invoice. Is the freehold owned collectively by the tenants?