We are purchasing a property in Canary Wharf. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a conveyancer? At some point we have to put funds into their account. What protection do we have from them run away with our money?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
It is not clear whether my mortgage offer obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have called into my local Canary Wharf building society branch on numerous occasions and was told it wasn't an issue and they will lend. My Canary Wharf conveyancing solicitor - who is on the lender conveyancing panel- called and was told they would not lend in accordance with their published requirements. Who do I believe?
The conveyancer has to comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook Part 2 specifications for your lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the mortgage company will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the mortgage company to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
My offer was accepted on a house in Canary Wharf on 23/4/2025, valuation was booked 2 days after, received a clean bill of health. Property lawyer instructed, so the only thing outstanding was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to HSBC and chasing them on my offer, I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the HSBC conveyancing panel. Are HSBC entitled to hold back the Mortgage pending the lawyer being on the approved list?
Mortgage companies tend not to not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for HSBC to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the HSBC conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
What can a local search tell me concerning the house we're buying in Canary Wharf?
Canary Wharf conveyancing often starts with the submitting local authority searches directly from your local Authority or via a personal search organisations for instance Xpress Legal The local search is essential in every Canary Wharf conveyancing purchase; as long as you wish to avoid any nasty once you have moved into your property. The search will provide information on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the property (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 subject areas.
Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my house can not be found. The solicitors who did the conveyancing in Canary Wharf 5 years ago no longer exist. What do I do?
You no longer need to hold title deeds to prove you are the owner of your registered land or premises, given that the Land Registry hold details of all registered land or property electronically.
I opted to have a survey done on a property in Canary Wharf in advance of retaining solicitors. I have been told that there is a flying freehold aspect to the property. My surveyor advised that some mortgage companies tend refuse to grant a mortgage on a flying freehold home.
It varies from the lender to lender. Lloyds has different instructions for example to Halifax. If you e-mail us we can check via the relevant mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Canary Wharf. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Canary Wharf especially if they are familiar with such properties in Canary Wharf.
I was advised by numerous property agents in Canary Wharf to get a quote from a property lawyer using your seach tool. Is there a financial incentive for Estate Agents to market your lawyers over alternative conveyancing organisations?
We don’t give any referral fee for sending work our way. We found it would be just too difficult to pay a commission because a client could think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not getting any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.
Am I better off to appoint a Canary Wharf conveyancing practitioner who is local to the property I am purchasing? I have an old university friend who can handle the legal formalities however her office is 300kilometers drive away.
The benefit of a high street Canary Wharf conveyancing firm is that you can attend the office to sign paperwork, deliver your ID and pester them if necessary. Having local Canary Wharf know how is a plus. However it's more important to get someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If you know people who used your friend and the majority were happy that should trump using an unfamiliar Canary Wharf conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being round the corner.