I am in the process of selling my ground floor flat in Burnage and the EA has just text me to say that the buyers are switching property lawyer. The excuse is that the lender will only engage with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. Why would a major mortgage company only engage with certain solicitors rather the firm that they want to appoint for their conveyancing in Burnage ?
UK lenders have always had an approved set of law firms that can represent them, but in the last few years big names such as HSBC, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for more than 15 years.
Lenders point to the increase in fraud as the reason for the reduction – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Some are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The buyers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.
Can you clarify what the consequences are if my solicitor is suspended from the Nottingham Solicitor panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Burnage?
The first thing to point out is that, this is a very rare occurrence. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit at a cost.
I am purchasing my first flat in Burnage with a loan from Halifax. The developers would not move on the amount so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The estate agent told me not reveal to my solicitor about this extras as it could jeopardize my loan with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML 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 £305k and found one near me in Burnage I like with amenity areas and station in the vicinity, the downside is that it only has 52 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Burnage in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a lease with such few years left?
Should you need a home loan that many years may be an issue. Discount the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the property for a minimum of twenty four months you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this.
Hoping to buy a property located in Burnage and I am already nervous. I couldn't find anything specific about Burnage. Conveyancing will be needed in due course but do you know about the Burnage area? or perhaps some other tips you can share?
Rather than looking online forget looking online you should go and have a look at Burnage. In the meantime here are some basic statistics that we found
I am using a search engine for the term conveyancing in Burnage it shows results of many solicitorsin the area. With so much choice what is the best way to find the right property lawyer for purchase transaction?
The preferential method of choosing the right conveyancer is via trusted recommendation, so enquire of colleagues and family who have bought a property in Burnage or a local estate agent or financial adviser. Charges for conveyancing in Burnage differ, so it's a good idea to request at least four fee calculations from varying types of solicitors. Dont forget to clarify that the charges are guaranteed not to rise.