My partner and I are planning to acquire a home in Abergele and are in fact using a Abergele conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our solicitor has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with a view to exchanging next week. Platform Home Loans Ltd have this afternoon contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Abergele conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?
If you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Abergele solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
Do lawyers request money up-front when it comes to conveyancing in Abergele?
Where you are retaining lawyers for conveyancing in Abergele your lawyer will request that you put them with monies to cover the search fees. Ordinarily this is needed to cover the fees of the conveyancing searches. If any deposit is payable against the sale price then this should be required shortly prior to exchange of contracts. The closing balance that is needed will be payable a few days ahead of the day of completion.
When it comes to mortgage companies such as RBS, do Abergele conveyancers have to pay an annual charge to be on the conveyancing panel?
We are not aware of any mortgage company fees to be on their panel, although some do levy an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel submission.
We had selected conveyancers with offices in Abergele on the TSB solicitor approved list. They have just invoiced me an additional fee for dealing with the TSB mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by TSB?
Provided it is contained in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your property lawyer is entitled to levy a fee for this. The charge is not set by TSB but by your Abergele property lawyer. Numerous firms on the TSB panel will quote ’dealing with mortgage’ fee and others do not.
I am buying a property in Abergele. An unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Solicitors conducting should look into this right? Will my lender Aldermore be concerned?
As your lender is Aldermore your lawyer must comply with the formal requirements contained in Section two of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Aldermore. The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook sets out minimum conditions for solar panel roof-space leases, and conveyancing practitioners are required to report to Aldermore where a lease does not satisfy these conditions. The specifications relate to the installation of panels on properties nationwide and is not restricted to Abergele.
Should commercial conveyancing searches reveal impending roadworks that may impact a commercial property in Abergele?
Many commercial conveyancing solicitors in Abergele will execute a SiteSolutions Highways report as it dramatically cuts the time that conveyancers expend in sourcing accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Abergele. The report provides definitive data on the adoption status of roads, footpaths and verges, as well as the implication of traffic schemes and the rights of way surrounding a commercial development sites in Abergele.
For every commercial conveyancing transaction in Abergele it is critical to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. The absence of identifying developments where adoption procedures have not been dealt with adequately may cause delays to Abergele commercial conveyancing transactions as well as pose a risk to future intentions for the site. These searches are not ordered for domestic conveyancing in Abergele.
My wife and I purchased a terraced Edwardian house in Abergele. Conveyancing solicitor acted for me and Virgin Money. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and I saw two entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold under the exact same address. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?
You should read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Abergele and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they buy they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with buyers. You can also enquire as to the situation with the conveyancing practitioner who conducted the purchase.
I have miscalculated my finances and am a couple of grand short a 10% deposit on my apartment purchase in Abergele , but I still want to go ahead. What can I do?
You can agree a smaller deposit. Most property owners will accept a smaller deposit or even no deposit for a first time buyer or 100% mortgage. Be aware though that if you fail to complete you will still need to hand over a minimum of 10% of the purchase price regardless of how much deposit was agreed.
You can also agree a simultaneous exchange and completion as no deposit is required for this however neither party will be tied in until completion actually takes place and it can be risky if sellers change their mind at the last minute