by Tony Lilleystone, Legal Manager
Get a quote for Conveyancing in Tyne And Wear
What service can you expect from a Conveyancing Solicitor in the Tyne & Wear region?
Whether you are buying or selling a home anywhere within this part of North East England, you need to find a Solicitor who gives first-rate advice on all aspects of Conveyancing, is Fast and proactive, and all for the Cheapest Fee. Can it be done?
In short, yes - But you should be aware of the risks specific to this local area.
The Tyne & Wear region is generally considered as including the districts of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and North Tyneside lying north of the River Tyne, and Gateshead, South Tyneside and Sunderland south of the Tyne and north of the River Wear.
As a specialist in residential property Conveyancing in all parts of Tyne & Wear, including Newcastle, Gateshead, North Shields, Sunderland, Washington, and South Shields, a Fridaysmove Conveyancing Solicitor can handle all the legal side of your house purchase or sale.
The first step you should do is to get a Conveyancing Quote for the legal fees together with the other expenses which arise, such as search fees, stamp duty and land registry fees.
You can get an Instant Quote for Conveyancing in Tyne & Wear from a Fridaysmove Conveyancing Solicitor Online in a few clicks, or phone our team on 0330 660 0286.
By all means get quotes from a number of companies, but do compare all quotations to make sure that you're actually getting the best deal. Regrettably, some firms will quote very low ‘headline’ fees, but then add on additional charges for work which you might expect to be included. These charges can cover such work as dealing with your mortgage lender, completing the stamp duty form on-line, and even an administrative charge for opening your file!
These are some of the areas of law which will be of particular concern in the Conveyancing of homes in the Tyne and Wear area:
Much of the Tyne and Wear region was formerly associated with traditional heavy industries and coal mining. With the decline of these industries, and relocation of modern industry to modern industrial parks, former industrial areas are now often re-developed with housing. There can be issues with such redevelopment, as pollution may remain in the ground long after all signs of previous industry have disappeared. Where houses have been recently built on such land the planning consent will require appropriate remedial works to be carried out, but this was not always the case in the past.
A Conveyancing Solicitor acting for a house buyer will arrange for an environmental survey to be carried out to ascertain whether there are any potential environmental issues affecting a property. This will show what land has previously been used for. It will also show any potential sources of pollution still existing in the area.
Although underground coal-mining in the Tyne and Wear area has now ceased, houses may still be liable to the effects of subsidence from former mine-workings. As colliery buildings have been demolished and spoil-heaps removed or landscaped, it can be difficult for a casual observer to see any apparent sign of mining in the vicinity, but your Conveyancing Solicitor will check whether there is any record that your home has suffered from subsidence and whether this is a potential problem.
Within the Tyne & Wear area there is a wide variety of flats and apartments. They range from properties in modern blocks to conversions of older commercial buildings, and from purpose-built maisonettes to apartments created by the conversion of large period properties.
For anyone buying or selling a flat in this part of the world, your Conveyancing Solicitor will be able to guide you through the legal minefield that is so often part of leasehold property ownership. For the seller, the Conveyancer will deal with such matters as obtaining management information from landlords’ managing agents, invariably required by buyers for properties in larger blocks.
Acting for purchasers, the Solicitor will advise on the provisions of the lease (including whether there are any particular covenants that might cause concern to a particular buyer, such as a ban on keeping pets) and will check that there are satisfactory management arrangements in place. Where there are several apartments in a building, service charges can be a significant expense for homebuyers. The buyer’s Conveyancing Solicitor will check the service charge accounts for previous years, and the estimate for the current year’s expense. She will also find out if the landlord intends to carry out any major works to the building in the immediate future. This will ensure that the purchaser knows how much he will have to pay in service charges.
Enquiries will also be made as to whether the owner has had any disputes with the landlord or other tenants, and whether the managing agents have notice of any existing breach of covenants. If there are any arrears of ground rent or service charges, the Conveyancing Solicitor will make arrangements for these to be settled at completion, to avoid the new owner having to pay money owed by the previous owner.
Freehold flats
In the North-East, as in other parts of England, flats and apartments are usually owned with leasehold title. The owner may also have a share in the freehold, either directly or as a shareholder in a company which owns the freehold. However occasionally freehold flats are encountered, where the owner just owns the freehold of his or her flat and no other part of the building. In such cases the freehold of other flats in the building will be separately owned, so that one freehold will be above another, often called a ‘flying freehold.’
For various legal reasons freehold flats are not normally acceptable to mortgage lenders, so in most parts of the country they are rarely encountered. However they are more common in the North-East of England, and Conveyancing Solicitors in Tyne and Wear will encounter them from time to time. Some lenders do lend on freehold flats provided that the legal title incorporates necessary provisions, and they will require confirmation of this from Solicitors.
NB. Sometimes the owner of a larger house will divide it into flats, selling one or more, while retaining one for himself. Leases are usually granted for the flats being sold, but the original owner will retain the freehold of the whole building so will not have a lease of his own flat. This is not strictly the same as a freehold flat. When such an owner wants to sell his retained flat, he will usually want to sell the freehold of the whole building. Agents may therefore advertise the property as freehold. When this situation arises, mortgage lenders will usually now insist that a new lease of the flat is granted to the buyer, similar in terms to existing lease of the other flat in the building. The mortgage will then be secured on the new leasehold title. Should this situation arise, a Conveyancing Solicitor in Tyne & Wear will be able to provide advice and prepare any necessary documentation.
For anyone wanting to buy a new house in Tyne and Wear, a Conveyancing Solicitor’s assistance should make the process trouble-free. They will check all aspects of the title and ensure that you should not have any legal problems after completion.
House builder’s Conveyancing Solicitors will prepare standard contract and transfer documents, and the buyers’ Solicitor will check through these. Although amendments are not normally permitted to such standard documents, it may be necessary to point out errors in the documents, or amendments which will be needed for a particular property. The Solicitor will also check the plot plan supplied with the documents. This is especially important when buying a new flat, or a newly converted flat in an older building, as the land registry now imposes strict requirements for deed plans. If a plan does not comply with its criteria then the registry may refuse to register the buyer’s title.
The buyers’ Conveyancing Solicitor will check that the house will have the benefit of a warranty, such as that offered by the National House-Building Council (NHBC). These warranties provide cover against building defects discovered during the first ten years after completion, and mortgage lenders insist upon them for new homes. Under the current NHBC scheme builders cannot issue a certificate that a house is complete and ready for occupation until it has been passed by the NHBC inspector, and buyers’ Conveyancing Solicitors cannot request mortgage funds until they have received confirmation that the NHBC completion certificate has been issued.
The benefit of the warranty passes to subsequent owners, so it is essential to ensure that the warranty is obtained.
Buying a home which has been repossessed by a mortgage lender is sometimes seen as a way of buying property cheaply, as they are often sold for less than similar properties in the same area. There is also the advantage that the seller will not have a related purchase, so the transaction is ‘chain-free.’
However these properties are usually not in good condition, and in addition to a proper building survey buyers should arrange to have surveys carried out on electrical, gas, heating and water systems and appliances by qualified engineers. The general rule is ‘buyer beware’ in other words the buyer purchases the property as it stands, and cannot complain if defects are discovered after completion.
In March 2010 Fridaysmove Conveyancing Solicitor Fay Cahill was instructed by the buyer of a repossessed freehold house in Eastern Way, Blakelaw, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE5. The house was being sold by a mortgage lender who had repossessed the property and was selling under its power of sale.
The copy of the registered title was received from the Conveyancing Solicitor acting for the lender, Cantor Law, showed that there were in fact two mortgages registered against the property, as well as various ‘equitable charges’ in respect of county court judgements against the owner. The title also referred to some covenants contained in a 1990 Transfer of the house when it was sold by Newcastle-upon-Tyne City Council, but the Conveyancing Solicitors did not send a copy of that.
As is usual on repossession sales, the Conveyancing Solicitors acting for the lender were unable to supply any information about the property such as is normally provided by sellers. Fay arranged for the usual property searches to be carried out, and advised the buyer to arrange surveys of the services.
Fay had to ask the Conveyancing Solicitors for a copy of the 1990 Transfer, which they eventually supplied. The covenants were as follows:
Covenants such as this are very common on residential properties, and provided that there is no evidence of any existing breach they should not cause any problems for buyers. The covenants include a provision not to alter the external appearance without consent - as the covenant was imposed by Newcastle Council that might have caused problems if any work had been carried out, but the house had apparently not been altered.
The local search confirmed that the house adjoined a public road, and apart from the usual Smoke Control Order there was nothing else of any significance in the search results. The drainage and water search indicated that there was a public sewer within the property boundary. As the drainage authority may require access for inspection and maintenance, they will not normally permit anyone to erect permanent buildings over such a sewer. An inspection of the title plan showed that the sewer ran through a garden area at the side of the house, and the buyer was informed accordingly.
When a property is being sold by a mortgage lender, a special land registry transfer form is used. This will have the effect of removing not only the lender’s mortgage from the title after completion, but also removing any subsequent charges. Although there were some charges registered in respect of county court judgements against the owner, these would be ‘overreached’ on completion so they were not of any concern. Buyers may unfortunately continue to receive correspondence from the creditors, but they should inform them that the property has been sold and that any charge against the property has been removed.
For house buyers, completion is the day on which they move. This can often be a very busy but exciting experience, sorting out removal arrangements and moving into a new house, often after delays in the legal work. The Conveyancing Solicitor will also be busy, especially if the client is selling one house and buying another. A redemption figure will have to be obtained from the lender on the home being sold, and mortgage funds will be awaited from the lender on the new property. Some lenders are not as efficient as others in providing information or sending money. Conveyancing Solicitors are dependent on the banks systems for electronic money transfers, and sometimes there are hold-ups, especially on days when there are a lot of transfers in the system such as month-end salary payments.
If a purchase is dependent on a sale, the Conveyancing Solicitor will have to wait to receive money from the purchasers’ Solicitor before being able to send the purchase money. When there are several transactions in the chain below, the money may not be received until late in the day. Keys cannot normally be released until the vendors’ Conveyancing Solicitors have received the purchase money, which can cause problems with removal companies.
A Solicitor will do their best to ensure that everything goes smoothly, and if problems do arise they will try to contact you to explain what is happening. In these days of mobile phones that is usually not too difficult, but you should ensure that your Conveyancing Solicitor can contact you if necessary.
If you are Looking for a Quote for buying or selling a home in the Tyne & Wear region, you will want to know that your Conveyancing Solicitor knows all about property in the area.
This local knowledge can translate into Fast Conveyancing, and a quicker completion, and with the comfort that you will not have any legal issues with your new home.
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