Am I correct in assuming that the fact that my solicitor in Chepstow is not listed on my bank's solicitor panel that there is a problem with the standard of her conveyancing?
That would more than likely be a wrong assumption to make. There are all sorts of perfectly reasonable explanations. A recent report by the solicitors regulator indicated 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The top 5 reasons are as follows: (1) low volume of transactions (2) the lawyer is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. Should you be concerned you should contact the Chepstow conveyancing firm and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for your mortgage company.
What happens if my lawyer’s firm is removed from the Santander Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Chepstow?
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 for a fee.
What is the difference between a licensed conveyancer and conveyancing solicitor in Chepstow
There are many registered licenced Conveyancers in Chepstow and Solicitor partnerships in Chepstow who provide Conveyancing services We would stress that the two are supervised by regulatory bodies with both specialising in the legal work in the home buying process. The two can deal with other property legal work such as remortgage conveyancing, enfranchisement and transfer of equity conveyancing.
Is it the case that all Chepstow CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors are on the Aldermore conveyancing list of approved practices?
A selection of lenders now make use of CQS as the kick off point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS membership however is no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitor practices wishing to join their approved list of conveyancing solicitors.
After months of negotiation I have agreed a price on a house in Chepstow. My financial adviser recommended their conveyancers. I paid an upfront payment of £200. Shortly after, the property lawyer called me to say that they were not on the Nottingham conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Nottingham panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.
My colleague suggested that where I am purchasing in Chepstow I should ask my conveyancer to carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
This is a search is sometimes included in the estimate for your Chepstow conveyancing searches. It is a large document of about 40 pages, listing and setting out important information about Chepstow around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime details, Chepstow Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data about Chepstow.
I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £245,000 and found one close by in Chepstow I like with a park and railway links in the vicinity, however it's only got 61 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Chepstow suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a lease with such few years left?
If you require a home loan that many years will likely be problematic. Reduce the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor regarding this.
I have been advised by a number of property agents in Chepstow to get a quote from a solicitor on your site. What’s the financial incentive for Estate Agents to promote your site ahead of another?
We refuse to make any financial incentive for directing people our way. We found it would be just too difficult to pay a commission as members of the public would think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I receiving any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.