I am refinancing my property in Baguley, does my lawyer have to be on the Leeds Building Society Conveyancing panel?
There is nothing to stop you using your solicitor, but Leeds Building Society will insist on their interests being represented by a firm on their conveyancing panel. There is much more potential for delays and confusion with two solicitors involved, and it will undoubtedly be more expensive too.
I'm the only beneficiary of my late mum's estate with all property in now in my sole name, including the my former home in Baguley. The Baguley property was put into my name in October. I now wish to sell up. I understand that there is a Mortgage Lenders six month 'rule', meaning my proprietorship may be treated the same way as if I'd bought the house in October. Do I have to wait half a year to sell?
The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook obliges conveyancers to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." By the strict wording you could be caught by that. Some lenders would take a practical view as this clause is chiefly there to capture the purchase and immediately sell or the flipping of property.
Is it the case that all Baguley conveyancing solicitors on the Principality conveyancing panel are overseen by the SRA?
As solicitors, in order to be on the Principality conveyancing panel they would need to be overseen by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. Many mortgage companies do permit licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such organisation would be governed by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
After what feels like an age I have had an offer on an apartment in Baguley accepted, the vendors do however have an associated purchase. The owners have placed an offer on a flat, but it’s not yet tied up, and are looking at other flats booked. I have instructed a local conveyancing solicitor in Baguley. What should be my next step? At what point do I apply for the mortgage with UBS?
It is usual to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket too early (mortgage application is in the region of one thousand pounds, then survey, Baguley conveyancing search charges, etc). First, you should ensure that your lawyer is on the UBS approved list. Concerning the next stages this very much depends on the uniqueness of your case, attraction to this property and on the state of the market. During a rising market some purchasers will apply for a home loan with UBS and arrange for the valuation and only if it was satisfactory would they request their property lawyer to proceed with the conveyancing in Baguley.
I'm purchasing a new build house in Baguley with a loan from Chelsea Building Society. The developers refused to budge the amount so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The property agent suggested that I not reveal to my conveyancer about this side-deal as it will impact my loan with the lender. Is this normal?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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 advised by a few property agents in Baguley to select a property lawyer on your site. Is there a financial advantage for Estate Agents to offer your services over another?
We don’t offer any financial incentive for pointing buyers and sellers our way. We found it would be just too difficult to pay a commission because a client could think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I receiving any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.
My step-father has suggested that I use his lawyers for conveyancing in Baguley. Do I take his recommendation?
No doubt the ideal way to choose a conveyancing lawyer is to get referrals from friends or relatives who have actually experience in using the solicitor that you are considering.
What are my options where I am not happy with the property lawyer who conducted my conveyancing in Baguley?
We live in an imperfect world, and is is a fact of life that sometimes things do go wrong. Nevertheless there is recourse where you were not happy with your conveyancing in Baguley. This varies from trying to resolve matters directly with them, through to reporting a conveyancer to their governing body. If you remain unhappy you may consider getting in touch with the Legal Ombudsman.