Me and my fiance are buying a 2 bedroom flat in Brentford with a mortgage. We have a Brentford solicitor, however the mortgage company says he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the lender panel conveyancing practices or continue with our Brentford conveyancing practitioner 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?
Unfortunately,no. The mortgage offered to you 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 Brentford conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
My partner and I are acquiring a newly constructed flat in Brentford and my conveyancer is advising me that she is duty bound to the bank to reveal incentives from the builder. I am nearing the developer’s deadline to sign contracts and I have no desire to prolong matters. Is my lawyer right?
You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your solicitor. A precondition to being on a bank panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.
Should lawyers ask for money up-front for conveyancing in Brentford?
If you are buying a property in Brentford your solicitor will ask you to provide them with monies to cover the search fees. Ordinarily this is asked for to cover the fees of the conveyancing searches. When the deposit is as part of the sale price then this should be required shortly prior to contracts are exchanged. Any further balance that is due should be transferred shortly before completion.
Should commercial conveyancing searches disclose proposed roadworks that could affect a commercial land in Brentford?
Its becoming the norm that commercial conveyancing solicitors in Brentford will perform a SiteSolutions Highways report as it dramatically cuts the time that conveyancers spend in sourcing accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Brentford. The search result sets out definitive data 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 Brentford.
For every commercial conveyancing transaction in Brentford it is crucial to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. Failure to identify developments where adoption procedures have not been addressed adequately may result in delays to Brentford commercial conveyancing deals as well as pose a risk to future plans for the site. These searches are not conducted for domestic conveyancing in Brentford.
As co-executor for the estate of my father I am selling a property in Swansea but I am based in Brentford. My lawyer (approximately 235 kilometers from meneeds me to execute a stat dec prior to completion. Can you recommend a conveyancing solicitor in Brentford who can attest this legal document for me?
Technically speaking you should not be required to have the documents witnessed by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily or notary public or qualified solicitor will suffice regardless of whether they are located in Brentford
We have had DIP from Virgin Money who suggested we could borrow up to £350k. When do we need to instruct a lawyer for conveyancing? Brentford is where we plan to move to.
It would be wise to instruct a conveyancer now so that the solicitor can open the file so they can commence their AML checks etc. If and when you wish them to start work you will be asked for a payment on account usually approximately £200. That should generally be after you have the mortgage offer and survey results, but should you want to speed matters you can start the ball rolling quicker even though you may be risking some money.