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

Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Hockley Heath. 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…’

I'm buying my first flat in Hockley Heath with a loan from Bank of Ireland. The developers refused to reduce the price so I negotiated 6k of additionals instead. The sale representative advised me not inform my lawyer about this side-deal as it may impact my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.

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

I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £195,000 and found one round the corner in Hockley Heath I like with amenity areas and railway links nearby, the downside is that it only has 52 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Hockley Heath suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a short lease?

If you require a mortgage the shortness of the lease will likely be problematic. Discount the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you can ask them to start the process of the extension and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer regarding this matter.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Hockley Heath. Conveyancing and Virgin Money mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Hockley Heath who previously acted has long since retired. Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to instruct a Hockley Heath conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Hockley Heath Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Does the lease have in excess of 80 years unexpired? Plenty Hockley Heath leasehold properties will incur a service charge for maintenance of the building set by the freeholder. If you buy the flat you will have to meet this liability, normally periodically throughout the year. This can differ from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common areas. There will also be a ground rent for you to pay yearly, normally this is not a large amount, say about £25-£75 but you need to check it because sometimes it can be surprisingly expensive. What is the yearly maintenance fee and ground rent?

I have been searching for Hockley Heath conveyancing quotes online. Can I be assured that all the Hockley Heath firms that are listed on your site are on the bank conveyancing panel?

The law firms listed on our site have advised us that they are on the mortgage company panel and agreed to advise us to take down their listing in the event of removal off of the mortgage company panel. To date we have not been informed by either a mortgage company or a member of the public that the data about a specific Hockley Heath firm being on the mortgage company conveyancing panel is not accurate.