My wife and I are intending to purchase a 3 bedroom apartment in Bickley with a mortgage. We have a Bickley conveyancer, but the bank advise she’s not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the bank panel conveyancing practices or continue with our Bickley solicitor as well as pay for one of their panel firms to act for them. We feel that this is unjust; is there anything we can do?
No, not really. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your Bickley conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
As someone unfamiliar with the Bickley conveyancing process what is your top tip you can give me for the legal transfer of property in Bickley
You may not hear this from too many lawyers but conveyancing in Bickley or throughout England and Wales is often a confrontational experience. Put another way, when it comes to conveyancing there exists an abundance of opportunity for conflict between you and others involved in the ownership transfer. E.g., the seller, estate agent and sometimes a lender. Appointing a solicitor for your conveyancing in Bickley is a critical decision as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the ONE person in the transaction whose interest is to protect your legal interests and to keep you safe.
Every so often a potential adversary will try and persuade you that you should follow their advice. For instance, the selling agent may claim to be helping by suggesting your lawyer is wrong. Or your financial adviser may tell you to do something that is against your lawyers guidance. You should always trust your lawyer above all other parties when it comes to the legal transfer of property.
My father informed me that in purchasing a property in Bickley there could be a number of restrictions affecting the ability to carry out external changes to the property. Is this right?
We are aware of a number of properties in Bickley which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to external alterations. Part of the conveyancing in Bickley should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.
We are purchasing a detached bungalow in Bickley. The intention is to carry out a loft conversion at the house.Will legal work on the property involve checks to determine if these works were previously refused?
Your conveyancer will check the deeds as conveyancing in Bickley can occasionally identify restrictions in the title documents which prohibit categories of changes or require the consent of a 3rd party. Many additions call for local authority planning permissions and approval under the building regulations. Many areas are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which frequently prevent or affect extensions. You should check these issues with a surveyor ahead of any purchase.
Is it the case that all Bickley solicitor firms on the UBS conveyancing panel are overseen by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the UBS approved list of solicitors they would need to be regulated by the SRA. Some mortgage companies do permit licenced conveyancers on their panel and in such a situation the organisation would be governed by the CLC.
I used Arc property Solicitors a few years past for my conveyancing in Bickley. Now, I need the files but the law firm has closed. What do I do?
You should call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate 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 Bickley of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously used, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
I am purchasing my first flat in Bickley with the aid of help to buy. The developers refused to reduce the price so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The sale representative told me not reveal to my conveyancer about this deal as it may affect my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer 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.
Am I best advised to go with a Bickley conveyancing lawyer who is local to the property I am hoping to buy? I have an old university friend who can perform the legal work however his firm is located 300miles away.
The benefit of a high street Bickley conveyancing firm is that you can visit the firm to execute documents, hand in your identification documents and apply pressure on them where appropriate. They will also have local intelligence which is a plus. That being said it's more important to get someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If you know people who used your friend and in the main were happy that should trump using an unfamiliar Bickley conveyancing solicitor just because they are Bickley based.