I am selling my ground floor flat in Aughton and the estate agent has just called to warn that the purchasers are switching property lawyer. The reason given is that the mortgage company will only engage with solicitors on their approved list. Why would a leading lender only work with certain solicitors rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Aughton ?
Mortgage companies have always had an approved set of law firms they are willing to work with, but in recent years big names such as Santander, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for decades.
Mortgage companies blame a rise in fraud as the reason for the cull – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The purchasers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.
We see that you have a search directory listing firms on the Principality conveyancing panel. Do companies pay you a commission if I retain them for our conveyancing in Aughton?
We are a listing service only for law firms wishing to communicate if they are on the Principality conveyancing panel or other lender panels. We do not charge referral fees to any conveyancer that you subsequently appoint for your conveyancing in Aughton.
We're in Aughton, First time buyers purchasing with a mortgage (lender is HSBC , and our lawyer is on the HSBC conveyancing panel). How long should the conveyancing process take?
The fact that your lawyer is on the HSBC conveyancing panel is a help. It would almost certainly delay matters if they were not. However, no property lawyer should guarantee a timeframe for your conveyancing, due to third parties outside of your control such as delays caused by lenders,conveyancing search providers or by the other side’s solicitors. The time taken is often determined by the number of parties in a chain.
What does a local search reveal concerning the property we're purchasing in Aughton?
Aughton conveyancing often commences with the submitting local authority searches directly from your local Authority or through a personal search organisations such as Xpress Legal The local search is essential in every Aughton conveyancing purchase; that is if you don’t want any nasty surprises after you move into your property. The search will reveal data on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the property (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of thirteen subject headings.
I used Action Conveyancing several years ago for my conveyancing in Aughton. I now require my file however cannot find the solicitor. What do I do?
You should call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracing your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Aughton of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously instructed, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and identified one round the corner in Aughton I like with amenity areas and transport links in the vicinity, however it's only got 52 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Aughton in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?
If you require a mortgage that many years may be problematic. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you could 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 term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer concerning this.