We are buying a 1 bedroom apartment in Blackfriars with a mortgage. We have a Blackfriars solicitor, however the lender says she’s not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the lender panel conveyancing practices or continue with our Blackfriars conveyancing practitioner as well as pay for one of their panel firms to represent them. This seems very unfair; are we not able to demand that the bank use our Blackfriars conveyancer ?
Unfortunately,no. 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. A further alternative is for your Blackfriars conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
I am acquiring a property for cash in Blackfriars. I have lived for the previous 20 years in Blackfriars. Conveyancing searches are a lot of money. As I have knowledge of the road and vicinity intimately must I have all the conveyancing searches?
If you not getting a home loan, then the vast majority of the Blackfriars conveyancing searches are non-obligatory. Your conveyancer will try and sway you, perhaps strongly, that you should have searches done, but she is duty bound to do this. One thing to consider; if you are likely to sell the house at a future date, it could be of relevance to your prospective purchaser what the searches reveal. There are plenty of instances where properties with day to day issues can still throw up unexpected search results. A good conveyancing solicitor in Blackfriars will be able to give you some sensible advice here.
Is there a reason why leasehold purchase conveyancing in Blackfriars costs more?
Blackfriars leasehold conveyancing transactions usually involve additional investigations than freeholds including investigating the Lease, liaising with the Landlord such as serving applicable notices on the Landlord or managing agent, obtaining up-to-date service charge and management information, obtaining Landlord’s consents and reviewing management accounts and formation documents.
We had appointed conveyancing lawyers based in Blackfriars on the Aldermore solicitor panel. They are now charging me a separate fee for dealing with the Aldermore mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by Aldermore?
Provided it is contained in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your lawyer is entitled to charge a fee for this. This charge is not dictated by Aldermore but by your Blackfriars lawyer. Plenty of firms on the Aldermore panel will levy an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.
I was told four weeks ago that my mortgage has been agreed to by Leeds Building Society. Is it usual for Leeds Building Society to only issue the offer once my solicitor in Blackfriars is approved on their conveyancing panel? Leeds Building Society have asked my solicitor to see a copy of their PI Insurance.
A lender would not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Leeds Building Society to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
Clydesdale have agreed my mortgage in principle, my bid on a property in Blackfriars has been accepted, now what?
The property agent will want to know who your solicitors are (ensure that the conveyancers are on the bank’s approved list). Telephone Clydesdale or your broker and finish off any outstanding documentation. Clydesdale will appoint a valuer who will get in contact with the estate agent or vendor to book an appointment. Once carried out (assuming no problems) it takes about a week for the mortgage offer to be issued. Clydesdale will send the offer to you and your lawyers. The legal work will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing in Blackfriars.
I used Action Conveyancing a few years past for my conveyancing in Blackfriars. I now require my file however the law firm has closed. What do I do?
Do contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracking down 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 Blackfriars of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously instructed, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
I was recommended by a few selling agents in Blackfriars to locate a conveyancer using your seach tool. Is there a financial advantage for Estate Agents to market your site over a competitor’s?
We refuse to make any referral fee for sending work our way. We thought it would be too underhand a fee because a client could think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not receiving any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.