My partner and I are planning to acquire a house in Bispham and are in fact using a Bispham conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our conveyancer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Santander have this evening contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Bispham conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Is this a problem?
When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is usual for the purchasers' solicitors to also represent 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 lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Bispham 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.
I am considering applying for a Aldermore mortgage for purchase of a new build (under development) in Bispham with 60% LTV. Is it compulsory to choose a solicitor on the conveyancing panel for Aldermore ?
There is nothing to stop you using your solicitor, but Aldermore will insist on their interests being represented by a firm on their conveyancing panel. There is greater potential for delays and confusion with an additional lawyer added to the mix, and it will undoubtedly be more expensive too.
Forgive me if this question is silly but I am unexperienced as FTB of a garden flat in Bispham. Do I receive the keys to the house on the completion date from my lawyer? If this is the case, I will appoint a local conveyancing solicitor in Bispham?
There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Conveyancing lawyers for you will transfer the completion advance to the vendor’s lawyers, and once they have received this, you should be called to receive the keys from the property Agents and start moving into the property. This tends to happen early afternoon.
Are all Bispham Conveyancing Quality Solicitors on the Santander conveyancing list of approved firms?
It is true that some lenders now utilise CQS as the kick off point for Panel approval such as HSBC and Santander. CQS membership however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitor practices wishing to join their panels.
It is not clear whether my mortgage offer obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have called my Bispham bank branch on a couple of occasions and was told they are content with the situation and they would lend. My Bispham conveyancing solicitor - who is on the bank conveyancing panel- called to say that they will not lend in accordance with their UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook minimum lease term requirements. I have no idea who is right.
Provided that the conveyancer is on the lender panel, she or he must follow the CML Handbook conditions for the lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the lender will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the bank to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years remaining.
It has been 4 months since my purchase conveyancing in Bispham took place. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £175,000 when infact I paid £180,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the property from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
Am I better off to appoint a Bispham conveyancing lawyer in close proximity to the house I am buying? We have a good friend who can perform the conveyancing but her office is a couple of hundredkilometers away.
The primary upside of using a high street Bispham conveyancing firm is that you can drop in to execute paperwork, hand in your ID and pester them if necessary. Having local Bispham know how is a plus. However it's more important to get someone that will do a good and efficient job. If if people you trust instructed your friend and in the main were happy that should surpass using an unfamiliar Bispham conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being local.
Do I cancel my mortgage payments with Leeds Building Society as soon as a completion date for my home sale in Bispham has been agreed?
No, you must keep paying any mortgage payments to Leeds Building Society until the mortgage is repaid from the proceeds of sale as part of your Bispham conveyancing.