My fiance and I are hoping to buy a property in Chalk Farm and have instructed a Chalk Farm conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Clydesdale have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Chalk Farm conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?
Where you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for 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 Chalk Farm lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
We were just about to exchange contracts for a ground floor flat in Chalk Farm. We have hit a stumbling block. The loan offer with Alliance & Leicester expires on 14/10/2025 but the owners are insisting on a completion date of 16/10/2025. Can one prolong the loan offer?
The person best placed to deal with your issue is your solicitors who should assess whether they should be discussing with the mortgage broker, vendor’s lawyers, estate agents or indeed all parties based on what has gone on in your conveyancing to date.
We're in Chalk Farm, First time buyers buying with a mortgage (lender is Santander , and our solicitor is on the Santander conveyancing panel). How long should the conveyancing process take?
The fact that your lawyer is on the Santander conveyancing panel is a help. It would almost certainly delay matters if they were not. However, no property lawyer should guarantee a timeframe for your conveyancing, due to third parties outside of your control such as delays caused by lenders,conveyancing search providers or by the other side’s solicitors. The time taken is often determined by the number of parties in a chain.
I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £235,500 and found one near me in Chalk Farm I like with open areas and transport links nearby, however it's only got 61 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Chalk Farm for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a short lease?
If you need a mortgage that many years will likely be problematic. Discount the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the property for a minimum of 2 years you could ask them to start the process of the extension and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this matter.
In my capacity as executor for the will of my father I am disposing of a residence in Monmouth but I am based in Chalk Farm. My solicitor (approximately 250 miles awayneeds me to execute a stat dec ahead of completion. Can you recommend a conveyancing lawyer in Chalk Farm who can witness this legal document for me?
strictly speaking you should not need to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily any notary public or solicitor will do regardless of whether they are based in Chalk Farm
Can you please clarify what my options are if my Chalk Farm conveyancing searches shows detrimental results?
Ordinarily, almost all issues that arise in Chalk Farm conveyancing search results can be addressed ahead of completion or title insurance may be obtained. You should remember that even though you intend on acquiring the premises and may be content to live with the search results, your mortgage lender may not, and when all said and done they have the word say.