My husband and I are looking to purchase a home in Blaby and have appointed a Blaby conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our property lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Barclays have this afternoon contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Blaby lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
If you are buying a property needing a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent 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 solicitor 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 bank's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Blaby lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
A colleague informed me that in purchasing a property in Blaby there may be various restrictions preventing external alterations to the property. Is this right?
We are aware of a number of properties in Blaby which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to external alterations. Part of the conveyancing in Blaby should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.
I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Virgin Money. I assume I don't need a Blaby lawyer on the Virgin Money panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?
If you have finished paying off your Virgin Money 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 Virgin Money mortgage from the register. Virgin Money, 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 Virgin Money has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Virgin Money has instructed the Land Registry to do so
About to purchase flat in Blaby. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Lender if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Blaby property lawyer is on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel.
Do commercial conveyancing searches reveal impending roadworks that could affect a commercial site in Blaby?
Many commercial conveyancing solicitors in Blaby will carry out a SiteSolutions Highways report as it dramatically cuts the time that conveyancers invest in looking into accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Blaby. The search result sets out definitive information on the adoption status of roads, footpaths and verges, as well as the implication of traffic schemes and the rights of way surrounding a commercial development sites in Blaby.
For each commercial conveyancing transaction in Blaby it is critical to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. Failure to identify developments where adoption procedures have not been addressed adequately could result in delays to Blaby commercial conveyancing transactions as well as pose a risk to future plans for the site. These searches are not ordered for domestic conveyancing in Blaby.
How does conveyancing in Blaby differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build residence in Blaby approach us having been asked by the builder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is constructed. This is because house builders in Blaby typically purchase the site, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct property lawyers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Blaby or who has acted in the same development.
My uncle has suggested that I use his conveyancing solicitors in Blaby. Should I find my own conveyancer?
No doubt the best way to choose a conveyancing practitioner is to get feedback from friends or family who have actually experience in using the conveyancer that you are considering.
Am in the process of purchasing my 1st property in Blaby. Conveyancing lawyer has been chosen. The financial consultant pointed out that a survey is not appropriate as the property is only fifteen years old.
As the bare minimum you need a Home Buyer's Report. Given the property is more than 10 years old the property will not benefit from a warranty, so you would be well advised not to take a risk. For a property that age with no signs of problems a Home Buyer's report could be sufficient. The report should highlight any apparent issues and recommend additional investigation if appropriate. If there are any indications of material issues get a full structural survey.