My fiance and I are hoping to buy a property in Burwell and have instructed a Burwell conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our solicitor has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Yorkshire Building Society have this evening contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Burwell conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. What do we do from here?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is conventional 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 property lawyer should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Burwell lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
Can you clarify what the consequences are if my solicitor is expelled from the Bank of Ireland Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Burwell?
The first thing to point out is that, this is very unlikely to happen. 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 happen to be the single beneficiary of my late father’s will with all property in now in my sole name, including the house in Burwell. The Burwell property was put into my name in October. I now wish to sell up. I do know about the Mortgage Lenders six month 'rule', which means that my property ownership may be considered the same way as if I'd bought the property in October. Do I have to wait 6 months to sell?
The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook mandates solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." By the strict wording you might be caught by that. many mortgage companies would take a practical view as this provision is primarily there to identify the purchase and immediately sell or the quick reselling of properties.
We had selected solicitors locally in Burwell on the Aldermore solicitor approved list. They are now charging me a further sum for the legal aspects of the Aldermore mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by Aldermore?
As unfair as it may appear, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your conveyancer can charge a fee for this. The fee is not set by Aldermore but by your Burwell solicitor. Some firms on the Aldermore panel will quote an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.
Last month we had a mortgage agreed in principle with Principality. Burwell conveyancing lawyers are appointed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from Principality?
There is no definitive answer here. Have Principality conducted the survey? Have you advised Principality as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Principality conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.
The deeds to our home can not be found. The lawyers who handled the conveyancing in Burwell 5 years ago have long since closed. What do I do?
These day there are copies made of almost everything, and your solicitor will be aware precisely where to find all the suitable documentation so you can buy or sell your house without a hitch. If copies are not available, your conveyancer may be able to arrange cover in the form of insurance or indemnities against future claims on the premises.
How does conveyancing in Burwell differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build property in Burwell contact us having been asked by the developer to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is constructed. This is because builders in Burwell usually purchase the land, 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 Burwell or who has acted in the same development.
I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I put an offer in last month in what was supposed to be a simple, chain free conveyancing. Burwell is the location of the property. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in Burwell are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Burwell you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Burwell may decide that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.