My wife and I are planning to purchase a home in Beddau and have instructed a Beddau conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our conveyancer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with a view to exchanging next week. Norwich and Peterborough Building Society have this evening contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Beddau conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?
When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is standard for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for the mortgage company. 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 property lawyer should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Beddau lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
How can we know in advance if a Beddau conveyancing solicitor on the Clydesdale panel is any good?
When it comes to conveyancing in Beddau obtaining recommendations is a sensible starting point. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one advertising the lowest fees. We would always advocate that you speak with the solicitor conducting your transaction.
I have paid off my mortgage with Aldermore. I assume I don't need a Beddau property lawyer on the Aldermore panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?
If you have finished paying off your Aldermore mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Aldermore mortgage from the register. Aldermore, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Aldermore has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Aldermore has instructed the Land Registry to do so
At last I have had an offer on a flat in Beddau agreed to, the sellers do nevertheless have a dependent purchase. The sellers have put an offer on a flat, but it’s not yet agreed to, and have viewings of other flats in the pipeline. I have selected a nearby conveyancing solicitor in Beddau. What should be my next step? When do I get the mortgage application with Skipton started?
It is normal to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur expenses too early (home loan application is in the region of £1k, then valuation, Beddau conveyancing search fees, etc). The first course of action is to check that your solicitor is on the Skipton approved list. As to the subsequent steps this very much depends on the circumstances of your case, motivation for this property and on the state of the market. During a hot market many buyers will apply for the mortgage with Skipton and arrange for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they ask their lawyer to press on with the conveyancing in Beddau.
The deeds to my property are lost. The conveyancers who dealt with the conveyancing in Beddau 10 years ago have long since closed. What do I do?
You no longer need to have the physical official documentation to evidence that you own the land or premises, as the Land Registry hold details of all registered land or property electronically.
I am purchasing a new build house in Beddau with the aid of help to buy. The developers would not budge the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of additionals instead. The sale representative suggested that I not reveal to my lawyer about the extras as it could affect my mortgage with Leeds Building Society. 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.
Should I use a Beddau conveyancing solicitor based in the location that I am purchasing? An old friend can handle the legal formalities however they are based approximately 350miles away.
The benefit of a high street Beddau conveyancing firm is that you can attend the office to execute paperwork, deliver your ID and pester them where appropriate. Having local Beddau know how is a plus. That being said it's more important to get someone that will do a good and efficient job. If if people you trust instructed your friend and they were impressed that must surpass using an unknown Beddau conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being round the corner.
Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Beddau from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?
- Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Beddau can be bypassed where you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ representatives. The majority of landlords or Management Companies in Beddau levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management information can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Beddau. Some Beddau leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors. You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is under 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale. If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should ensure that you hold the original share document. Arranging a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming process and frustrates many a Beddau conveyancing transaction. If a reissued share is required, do contact the company officers or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
I am the registered owner of a basement flat in Beddau, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Equivalent flats in Beddau with an extended lease are worth £265,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2101
You have 76 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £8,600 and £9,800 plus professional fees.
The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.