A conveyancing

[Carzycat]

I had an offer accepted on a flat around end of June. We had received an offer on our house and I went with the solicitor the estate agent recommended.
it took a long time to progress to exchange which my solicitor said was due to the solicitors for my vendors being slow to respond to queries.
last week we were told our buyers need to complete by end Oct and thankfully all enquiries were responded to,
I went to collect contracts for signing and there was a disclaimer for me to sign at e front of the pack saying I’m aware of the issue with ground rent and will be proceeding at my own risk,
essentially their is a clause in the lease which doubles the ground rent every 25yearsand in 2027 it will rise to £450 which could impact saleability.
i asked the solicitor why I wasn’t informed of this fundamental issue earlier but she said her firm will always set out any issues etc in one go when all enquiries are answered, and not before. The pack they sent with their quote speaks of a no conveyancing guarantee but she says that won’t apply as she’s done too much work, but she will only charge 50% as a gesture of goodwill.
isthis standard practice?
thanks

As I’m sure you’ve now discovered, taking any recommendation from an estate agent is unwise - for mortgage advisors, conveyancing or surveys. In future find local recommendations. The estate agent has a vested interest and is getting a referral fee - they don’t care if they’re any good.

As a buyer, the £450 a year wouldn’t unduly worry me, especially as the amount by then wouldn’t double again for a long time. Buying a flat I’d expect various such fees and resign myself to ridiculous clauses.

I’d guess by the offer of a reduced fee she realises she’s mucked up. I too would expect to be informed earlier and would be annoyed in your position.

Big question is, would you have pulled out if you’d found out earlier? Or negotiated a lower price? Is it worth starting again for?

So the issue with the ground rent isn’t so much the cost but that over £250 can mean it’s classed as an Assured short hold tenancy and many lenders won’t lend on this. They are prepared to provide indemnity insurance but it only protects the lender - mine will accept it but not all will.
Had I known sooner I would have had more options. As it stands I am proceeding with my sale with nowhere to move to which is incredibly stressful but the alternative is to lose my buyers and have to put the house back on the market.
i take your point about not taking estate agent recommends.

I take it you’re outside London OP?

Yes, firms raise their enquiries in different ways but I would expect a ground rent issue to be discussed with you in more detail as soon as it was noticed e.g. the possibility of asking the freeholder to vary the lease and who pays for that.

You need to take this issue up with the partners of the practice, if there are any and see what they say, and if they agree she has made a mistake maybe.

I’ma conveyancer and it’s ridiculous that they did not let you know about the ground rent as soon as they became aware of it! waiting until reporting stage for such a major issue is unacceptable. You need to speak to a partner about your fees as you shouldn’t have to pay for such sloppy work.

Yes outside London

Quick question, would the Director/Solicitor on the company website be equivalent to a partner?

Director yes, solicitor no.