Our lawyer has uncovered a a problem with the lease for the flat we are purchasing in Bow Street. The other side have put forward defective title insurance as a workaround. We are happy with insurance and will pay for it. Our property lawyer says that he must be satisfied that the mortgage company is willing to move forward with this solution. Who is the client here, us or the mortgage company ?
The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the potential for a conflict of interest, you and the bank are the client. Your conveyancing practitioner must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook specifications. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects with the lease so that the lender can be afforded the opportunity to check with their valuer as to the extent that the value of the property is affected. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.
In what way does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in Bow Street? What am I being asked for?
Bow Street conveyancing solicitors and indeed property lawyers throughout the UK have an obligation under Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering rules to verify the identity of any client in order to satisfy themselves that clients are who they say they are.
Conveyancing clients are required to produce two forms of certified identification; proof of identity (typically a Passport or Driving Licence) and evidence of address (typically a Bank Statement less than 3 months old).
Evidence of the origin of funds is also required in compliance with the money laundering statutes as lawyers are obliged to check that the funds you are utilising to purchase a property (whether it be the deposit for exchange or the full purchase monies where you are buying mortgage free) has originated from a reputable source (such as employment savings) rather than the fruits of criminal behaviour.
I am looking to buy a property and need a conveyancing solicitor in Bow Street who is on the Norwich and Peterborough Building Society approved. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a conveyancing firm?
Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Norwich and Peterborough Building Society in certain locations such as Bow Street. We dont recommend any particular firm.
Forgive me if this question is silly but I am unseasoned as FTB of a garden flat in Bow Street. Do I pick up the keys to the premises on completion from my lawyer? If so, I will instruct a High Street conveyancing solicitor in Bow Street?
There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Conveyancing lawyers for you will transfer the purchase money to the owner’s lawyers, and once they have received this, you should be able to receive the keys from the Estate Agents and start moving into the property. Usually this occurs between 1 and 3pm.
We had selected solicitors located in Bow Street on the Yorkshire BS solicitor approved list. They are now charging me a further charge for handling the Yorkshire BS mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by Yorkshire BS?
Unfortunately, so long as it is in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your conveyancing practitioner can levy a fee for this. The charge is not dictated by Yorkshire BS but by your Bow Street solicitor. Some firms on the Yorkshire BS panel will levy ’dealing with mortgage’ fee and others do not.
I recently had an offer accepted on an apartment in Bow Street. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their lawyer. I paid an advanced payment of £150. Not long after, the conveyancing practitioner contacted me sheepishly admitting that they were not on the Principality conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Principality panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.
I am buying my first flat in Bow Street with a mortgage from Platform Home Loans Ltd. The developers refused to move on the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of extras instead. The estate agent advised me not disclose to my solicitor about this side-deal as it would impact my loan with Platform Home Loans Ltd. 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 UK Finance website. UK Finance 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.
I have been on the look out for a flat up to £245,000 and found one near me in Bow Street I like with open areas and station nearby, the downside is that it only has 51 years on the lease. There is not much else in Bow Street in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?
If you require a home loan that many years will likely be an issue. Discount the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for at least 2 years you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer concerning this matter.