Property solicitor

[MummytoGeorgie]

I'm on maternity and I miss my work!

I'm a property solicitor, if anyone has any questions I would be more than happy to give some free advice to do with conveyancing i.e moving home, enquiries, searches, title documentation etc (no landlord tenant as that's not my area of expertise).

TIA

@MummytoGeorgie

I hope you are well. Just as an update, the vendors solicitors have now sent over all the necessary documents and the indemnity policy. I have spoken to the new associate who has taken over our file and he promised that our remaining enquires will be sent out my Close of business yesterday. Nothing! I chased yesterday, and again promised that it will be looked into my end of play, nothing as of yet, I sent out an email this morning, stating that its been over 2 weeks since our local authority searches have come back and no further enquires have been raised and we only have 3 weeks left to complete. Still no reply. I am thinking of emailing the partner by end of the day today. Am I being OTT? how long does it take to review a file and raise enquires?

Many thanks!
Faria

@flyingfreehold2021 hey! I hope you're ok... to review a file can take anywhere from an hour to a few hours if it's at the point of exchange depending how complex the case is... searches take me 15-20 minutes to review and this includes raising any necessary enquiries upon them... did you manage to get any clear answers today? I hope you did!! Zz

@flyingfreehold2021 and you're not being the over top!

@MummytoGeorgie thank you! How your keeping well too and enjoying the sunshine.. and your little one isn’t too hot and bothered in the heat...
after a call to the partner and I bashing down over the phone, our solicitor finally raised 2 enquiry and have also added that they still haven’t received any replies from the vendors solicitor! Whilst, the estate agent has forwarded me the emails from vendors solicitor confirming that they have sent the new documents to ours..but it’s a tiny step in the positive direction.. hope you have a lovely weekend!

This thread has been a real eye opener! Thank you! My husband and I are buying our first house at the moment, we have always rented due to being armed forces and moving a lot so we are FTB at 44 Our solicitor advised that the searches all came back fine, but that's all I know. Would you mind explaining for me the next steps so I can have some idea what needs to happen to get to completion? And also, can we state a preference for a completion date to tie in with an end of tenancy? The vendor is moving in with family so no chain. Thanks!

As a mum of 4 I'm happy to offer help and advice re-the baby in exchange 🤣

We've just discovered that we should have been entitled to MDR on our stamp duty - I've gone through the criteria on recent tribunals wjth HMRC and we fit all of them. It's enough money to make it worth recovery. It has been just over 3 years since purchase. Should we contact HMRC first do you think? Or our solicitors who have been severely lacking. The conveyancing was in my opinion left to a junior member and the partner in charge basically absent in advice or input it now seems. We're not sure what to do. I know a lot of these recovery firms charge a huge amount of commission on claims so wondering if we can do without... help!

Hi @MummytoGeorgie Lovely gesture of you and congratulations on your baby.

I have a question. My Partner and his brothers inherited their mother's home - equal shares. We now want to buy them out of their shares ( all agreed re value etc). But as we won't be using a mortgage I'm just not sure what we need to do.

Do we need a conveyancer or a solicitor to proceed? What are the first steps we need to do. Obviously we will be doing it all the legal route but just not sure where to start as never bought a home before.

Thanks.

Hi @MummytoGeorgie
What a lovely thread. I hope you can help me. We are downsizing. Our daughter and family are upsizing. So we are happily swapping houses. They have a mortgage offer in place. What’s our next step? As in do we just need a conveyancing solicitor to do the legal bit? Sorry but haven’t moved house in 35 years and have no estate agent to guide us.

@flyingfreehold2021 how annoying that the solicitor has advised the agent they have replied to the enquiries but yours hasn't received them. As you have a new person handling the case my guess is they've sent them to the old solicitor to left ! Let's hope yours gets them ASAP and you have more positive news early next week!! Hope you're having a good weekend too it is so hot my little George is coping ok but we're staying out of it ha xx

@Pissoi Hello, you are most welcome! Congrats on making the step to your first home :-)

Your solicitor may need to raise enquiries on the searches with the sellers solicitors depending on results.. you should find out what enquiries are outstanding I.e how many... when all enquiries have been dealt with then your solicitor will prepare the final report on title to you (report on the property with all findings) and send the contract and transfer deed to you for signing... when you return these and transfer your deposit it will then proceed to exchange.

Please make sure you have already provided your solicitor with proof of funds.

I'm assuming your mortgage offer is already out?

Re your rental, for example if you have a one month notice period... I would advise you to not give notice until such time as you have exchanged (when contracts become legally binding) with the completion date set one month after the exchange date so that you know you will complete at the end of the notice period...

You shouldn't do it beforehand as if you give notice before you exchange and god forbid the sellers were to pull out for some reason then you could make yourself homeless...

Speak to your solicitor about this so that they can advise the sellers solicitors accordingly.

:-) xxx

@housework1977 hello I would contact HMRC in the first instance.. if the solicitor is at fault and the time period has expired then you should proceed to take further action against the solicitors what an absolute pain! Hope you sort it xx

@MerlinsButler Hello, thanks for your message hope you're well and having a lovely weekend!

You will need to instruct a solicitor to act for you in the transfer of the property. They would prepare the transfer deed for your signing and ask whether you wanted searches carried out on the property which would potentially reveal a number of matters, as you're not having a mortgage the searches are not mandatory and can be overlooked. Some solicitors may not do it as a transfer and would do it as a sale so it's best you speak to the solicitor who will represent you in this whether they'd do it by way of transfer or sale.

Either way, no mortgage it shouldn't take long! Xxx

@Sugarandbuttersandwich Hello, I hope you're well! You will need a solicitor to act for you in the sale to your daughter and purchase from your daughter. I assume you won't be needing a mortgage as you're downsizing so you don't necessarily have to have searches undertaken when you buy although I would recommend it. I will send you some info tomorrow re the process of buying and selling so you are aware of the various stages... as your daughter is buying from you and you are a family member depending on whether you're selling to her at full market value the solicitor may have to report this to your daughters lender to get their express written consent to proceed... I'll be in touch more tomo as George is wide awake this evening, think it's the heat!

Have a lovely evening xxx

Thank you so much for your reply. That does help us find our way through the process. We are hoping to meet with a solicitor early next week. Hope George sleeps soon.

Thanks @MummytoGeorgie. Really helpful.

@MummytoGeorgie thank you so much for your help! She said all the searches are back, she has 1 enquiry outstanding with the sellers solicitor and then she can proceed so hopefully all on track. Yes the mortgage was offered a few weeks ago and the solicitor has had proof of deposit and done the money laundering checks. I will email her today and explain about the notice period for the rental and whether we can tie in exchange with the notice we need to give on the house. Thank you again!

Hi hoping you can help! We are purchasing and selling. The purchase is complete and contracts have been signed. We are still awaiting the searches to come back on our property.

Our buyers solicitor is stating that they require an indemnity policy/deed of declaration for our property. It is a first floor purpose built flat with its own entrance/exit. We do not pay any ground rent and we have a management company for the outside courtyard only.

Our solicitor is stating that it is not a reasonable request as they will never be charged ground rent and he doesn't want to charge us £300 for the extra work. He has suggested that their client takes out the policy if they are that bothered.

In your experience do these things normally fizzle out? They are very persistent but our solicitor is not budging. Their searches are due mid July. We have already had the property we are buying give us deadlines and that they would put their house back on the market

Thanks for any advice!

@MummytoGeorgie

I'm on maternity and I miss my work!

I'm a property solicitor, if anyone has any questions I would be more than happy to give some free advice to do with conveyancing i.e moving home, enquiries, searches, title documentation etc (no landlord tenant as that's not my area of expertise).

TIA

Hello MummytoGeorgie, I hope you are enjoying maternity leave! I was hoping for some advice please.

I am selling a leasehold property (and purchasing a freehold). We are about 7 weeks from completion (this is dictated by the vendors of the freehold I am purchasing, as they are emigrating). Anyway, there is one enquiry from my buyer's solicitor which is concerning me. They want to see the Building Insurance for the block (I am one of six flats in a small block, freeholder is a Housing Association). We pay Service Charge and GR to the Housing Association. The block is part of a much bigger estate of non-Housing Assoc blocks, and a portion of the Service Charge goes to a Managing Agent (MA) to maintain the grounds/ landscaping. All the block maintenance (i.e. inside) is undertaken by the Housing Association. We only pay the Housing Association, and then they pay a portion to the MA. My Lease is with the Housing Association. Anyway, as part of the LEP1 pack, it states that the HA pay the MA premiums for Building Insurance. An insurance certificate has been provided (which I have passed onto my Solicitors). However, the Buyer's solicitors is asking the MA for the policy documents. The MA has said they do not provide Building Insurance and they receive no premiums for this element from the HA (the freeholder) and it has since transpired that the Insurance Certificate which has been provided is not Building Insurance, it is in fact Public Liability Insurance for the Estate (in fact this becomes quite obvious when you look at the premiums as they are so low).

Now, I don't know whether the solicitors have picked this up from the Certificate I have provided, but now they are asking the HA direct for the Certificate and the Policy Docs. In the meantime I contacted my Leasehold officer (who was not very helpful), and kept asking me whether I pay a Service Charge and whether this includes Insurance. We receive a request for payment every year and we pay up, and at the end of the year sometimes we pay extra (for extra costs incurred such as maintenance). My Leasehold Officer also said "I don't know whether we provide Building Insurance, depends on your Lease". I was sure they did, and when I checked my lease, this is what is says (I have attached an image). So, they (the HA) are absolutely responsible for the Buildings Insurance!

I am slightly concerned that this will now delay my sale as they potentially may start arguing with the MA (i.e. we paid you, and it is up to you to source the Insurance, or in fact may tell us that the Service Charge didn't include for Buildings Insurance but surely this is their accounting error?!). The Lease places the onus on the Freeholder (the HA). I have since written to the HA, with a snapshot of the Lease and a request for the Insurance Certificate. My question (sorry this is so long), are what are my options if they don't respond? Could I ask my Buyer to purchase Buildings and Contents Insurance for the demise (flat), and offer to pay for a Contingent Indemnity Policy?

Also, quite apart from the Sale of my Property, our Block is potentially UNINSURED. So whilst they may want to fight it out with the MA, we need to have certainty that we are insured.

My Solicitor is a nice guy, but I am using a national network and I have to say I am unimpressed. A few weeks ago they kept saying we have to get a DoV for the Ground Rent; I looked into this including the CML Handbook, and we didn't need this. My Ground Rent is not classed as onerous and both my Solicitor and the Buyer's Solicitors failed to realise the property is in a London Borough; I spent two weeks arguing my case and now this query is closed and addressed. Hence I am trying to figure out whether there is a Plan B for the Building's Insurance. I have a good relationships with my Buyer and we are in touch on a regular basis. I cannot see anything in the CML Handbook re: Building Insurance and Indemnities.

We have time to fix this (like I said 7 weeks to completion) but just wondering what options I have (as I don't want to be waiting for the outcome of some HA/ MA "investigation")

@Sugarandbuttersandwich

I have wrote the below on my notes and copy and pasted but the font is different...

You instruct a solicitor to act for you in the sale and purchase of your properties…

On your sale, you will need to complete some forms re the property you are selling and these will be SENT over to your buyers solicitors for their review, they will review them and raise any enquiries on them (questions on things which may be unclear). The same with your purchase, your solicitor will RECEIVE the contract pack and raise any necessary enquiries. On a sale, you will need to answer to your solicitor any replies requiring a response from you regarding the enquiries raised from the buyer solicitor. You will also need to sign the contract and transfer. There really isn’t much for you to do on a sale except from sign the paperwork and answer any queries the buyers solicitors has. On a purchase, as described above, your solicitor will raise enquiries on the contract paperwork as well as your search results.. they will need to obtain a mortgage offer (if applicable), your survey if you have had one undertaken and want them to review it and your proof of funds. They should keep you updated with what enquiries they are raising and once all have been satisfactorily responded to then they will provide you with the final property report with all documentation to sign before proceeding to exchange of contracts.

Obv this is for straight forward transactions. Some things may crop up along the way, if there is a gifted element or international gift or undervalue or leasehold property then further steps need to be taken .. if you need any advice during the course of the transaction then just let me know!

Have a lovely day xxx

@lovo31 hi hope you are well! If the lease states that ground rent is payable but no ground rent is actually paid then a deed of variation is the right thing to request although there are other solutions to the problem. Providing that the buyers lender is happy with the current situation and is happy to rely on indemnity insurance then this is fine and your solicitor should stand firm with their current position. Xx

@areyouhavingagiraffe hey! The lease should advise whether insurance is to be paid by the homeowner or the landlord/agent. If it states that the landlord or agent should pay the insurance then the solicitor will be able to request a copy of the insurance certificate from them and if there is no insurance and they will need to obtain it as it would be a requirement under the lease.

If the lease is that each homeowner is to insure their own property then you will need to ensure that you have directly insured the property yourself and the buyers solicitors will most likely require a contingent indemnity policy that they will request that you pay for at your expense but this is something that can be negotiated between your solicitor and the buyers xx

@areyouhavingagiraffe sorry I just saw the extract of the lease that you provided. It is the landlord that needs to provide the buildings insurance so they should be able to do this. If the block is of a bigger estate sometimes the insurance is for the landlords properties as opposed to the actual property so anything that the landlord is the landlord for would be covered under the policy. It is normal for the buyers solicitor to request the insurance certificate as well as the policy documentation. Xx

Thanks so much. I'm a bit worried that the HA (landlord) will say "we have paid the funds to someone else (MA)" and MA are disputing this and there is no insurance, and this will inevitably delay things. But lease quite clearly states that the landlord have to provide it, so even if they ask someone to do it on their behalf surely they need evidence it's been done? Otherwise you could be paying funds to the MA with no evidence they are insuring the asset!!!! They keep sending the "public liability" certificate which is not "building insurance".

@areyouhavingagiraffe it clearly states in the lease that the landlord insures the building so yes, they will have to supply it or obtain it and supply it with all the supporting documentation. If I was you I'd try ringing them directly to save time and ask to speak to the manager if you're not getting the answers they need. They are in breach of the lease if they don't have it or get it for you immediately. You're welcome, hope you sort it xxx