Should lawyers request money up-front when it comes to conveyancing in Chichester?
If you are buying a property in Chichester your lawyer will request that you place them with funds to cover the search fees. Normally this is called for to cover the fees of the Local Authority Search. If any deposit is as part of the total price then this should be needed shortly prior to exchange of contracts. Any further balance that is needed should be sent to your lawyer a couple of days prior to the day of completion.
My flat in Chichester is up for sale and I have accepted an offer. Will my lawyer need to be on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel in order to deal with the discharge of my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. It might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their specifications fairly frequently in recent years.
Is it the case that all Chichester CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors are on the Nationwide conveyancing panel?
Some major banks and building societies now make use of CQS as the kick off point for Panel approval such as HSBC and Santander. CQS membership however is no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for firms wishing to remain on their approved list of firms.
The mortgage over my property is with Nationwide for my property in Chichester. Conveyancing was finalised a year ago. Should I wish to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Nationwide?
Your original mortgage agreement with Nationwide will provide that you need their approval before renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of Nationwide’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Nationwide directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Nationwide conveyancing panel solicitor.
I am due to exchange contracts on my apartment. I had a double glazing fitted in August 2008, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's mortgage company, TSB are being problematic. The Chichester solicitor who is on the TSB conveyancing panel is recommending indemnity insurance as a solution but TSB are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do TSB have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that TSB have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why TSB may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
I used Arc property Solicitors a few years past for my conveyancing in Chichester. Now, I need my documents however cannot find the solicitor. What do I do?
You should call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracing your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Chichester of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously used, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
Given that I am about to spend hundreds of thousands of pounds on a garden flat in Chichester I wish to have a conversation with the lawyer concerning theconveyancing ahead of giving the go ahead to the firm. Can this be arranged?
This is something that we encourage - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you speaking to the lawyer due to be doing your conveyancing in Chichester.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is unique individual, not a case reference. The solicitors that we put you in touch with believe that the figure you are quoted for residential conveyancing in Chichester should be the figure that you are charged.
Is there an average conveyancing fee for conveyancing in Chichester?
The average fee last year for conveyancing in Chichester was just under one thousand five hundred pounds excluding SDLT and Land Registry fees.