The sellers of the property we are looking to purchase are using a conveyancing firm in March who has suggested a lock out contract with a non-refundable deposit two thousand pounds. Are such agreements sensible?
There are two primary concerns with signing a lock out agreement (also referred to as a shut-out contract) is that it takes away the focus from moving forward with the conveyancing work, so in the absence of it needing minimal or no negotiation then it could transpire to be a cause of frustration and delay. It is not strongly advocated by March conveyancing solicitors as a result. A supplemental issue is the extent of the remedies available - a jilted buyer should not expect to be issued with an injunction to prohibit the vendor selling to a third party, so the only remedy open via the agreement will be the recovery of wasted charges and, in limited scenarios, the extra payment of damages.
A friend informed me that in buying a property in March there could be a number of restrictions as to what one can do in terms of external alterations to a property. Is this right?
There are anumerous of properties in March which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to external alterations. Part of the conveyancing in March should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.
I have paid off my mortgage with Santander. I assume I don't need a March conveyancer on the Santander panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.
If you have finished paying off your Santander mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Santander mortgage from the register. Santander, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Santander has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Santander has instructed the Land Registry to do so
I was told four weeks ago that my mortgage has been agreed to by Skipton. Is it usual for Skipton to only issue the offer once my solicitor in March is approved on their conveyancing panel? Skipton have asked my solicitor to see a copy of their Professional Indemnity Insurance Schedule.
Mortgage companies tend not to not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Skipton to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the Skipton conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
Various internet forums that I have come across warn that are the main cause of obstruction in March house deals. Is this right?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) published conclusions of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature within the top 10 causes of hindrances in the conveyancing process. Searches are not likely to be the root cause of slowing down conveyancing in March.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £235,500 and identified one round the corner in March I like with a park and transport links nearby, however it only has 49 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in March for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a short lease?
If you require a mortgage that many years will be problematic. Discount the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the property for a minimum of 2 years you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor concerning this.
My uncle has urged me to use his conveyancing solicitors in March. Do I follow his guidance?
Much as we are happy to recommend a March conveyancing lawyer it’s preferable to select a conveyancing solicitor is to get referrals from friends or relatives who have actually experience in using the conveyancer you're contemplating using.