My fiance and I are hoping to purchase a flat in Chester and are in fact using a Chester conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our conveyancer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with a view to exchanging next week. Accord Mortgages Ltd have this morning contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Chester solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
If you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is standard for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender. 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 Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. 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 Chester lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
In the event thatI were to purchase a simple residential homein Chester mortgage fee and have no survey and no local authority searches how much would I expect to to save on my conveyancing in Chester?
Any savings you would make will be isolated to the costs for searches. A conveyancing practitioner is required to do the vast majority of work - money laundering, correspond with the vendors property lawyer, SDLT return, register the title etc. You might save a bit for them not needing to register a mortgage but it won't be significant.
I had intended to instruct a property lawyer in Chester for our house move. Our financial adviser has since advised us that our mortgage lenders Godiva Mortgages Ltd won't deal with them. Why is this not regarded as unduly restrictive?
Banks on the whole imposes restrictions either the category or the number of conveyancing solicitors on their approved list of lawyers. Typical examples of such criteria being that a law practice must have two or more partners. As well as restricting the profile of firm, some have limited the amount of solicitor practices they allow to act for them. Be aware that Godiva Mortgages Ltd have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any member of Godiva Mortgages Ltd Conveyancer Panel. Mortgage fraud was a primary driver in the reduction of solicitor panels a few years ago even though there are differing views concerning the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Statistics from the Land Registry indicate that thousands of law firms, including some in or near Chester only perform very few conveyances per annum.
Do I select a Licenced Conveyancer or Solicitor for conveyancing in Chester?
Two types of professional can conduct conveyancing in Chester namely CLC regulated conveyancers or solicitors. Both professionals administer conveyancing services that required to complete the disposal or acquisition of property. They are both required to carry out Chester conveyancing on similar standards and guidelines so you can be sure that your conveyancing will be properly carried out and that the requirements and steps should be accurately adhered to.
Completion of my purchase has taken place for my property in Chester. Conveyancing was a necessary evil but I would like to complain about the lender. How do I make a complaint?
Almost all lenders have complaints procedures. Your first port of call should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Services Department at head office. In most cases complaints to a lender are resolved effectively and efficiently. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR who will take matters further.
After much negotiation I have agreed a price on an apartment in Chester. My mortgage broker recommended their conveyancers. I paid an on account payment of £175. A couple of days later, the property lawyer contacted me to say that they were not on the Yorkshire BS 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 Yorkshire BS 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.
I acquired my home on 4 October and my personal details are still not registered. Any reason for this? My conveyancing solicitor in Chester expressed confidence that it should be registered in less than a month. Are properties in Chester uniquely lengthy to register?
As far as conveyancing in Chester registration is no quicker or slower than the rest of the country. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timescales can differ according to who lodges the application, whether there are errors and whether the Land registry have to notify any 3rd persons or bodies. As of today in the region of three quarters of submission are fully dealt with in less than three weeks but occasionally there can be protracted delays. Registration is effected after the new owner has moved in to the premises thus an expedited registration is not typically top priority but where it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your lawyers can speak with the land registry and explain the circumstances.
Taking into account that I am about to part with 450k on a garden flat in Chester I wish to talk to a solicitor concerning thehome move in advance of giving the go ahead to the firm. Is this something that you can arrange?
Absolutely - we would be happy to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you speaking to the conveyancer who will be carrying out your conveyancing in Chester.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is unique person, not a case number. The law firms that we put you in touch with believe that the figure you are provided with for your conveyancing in Chester should be the figure that you are charged.