Am I correct in assuming that the fact that my conveyancer in Cippenham is not identified on my bank's conveyancing panel that there is a problem with the standard of his conveyancing?
It would not be wise to jump to that conclusion. There are all sorts of perfectly reasonable explanations. A recent report by the solicitors regulator indicated that over three quarters of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The most common reasons for removal are: (1) lack 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 simply call the Cippenham conveyancing firm and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for your bank.
We are a couple about to sign contracts for a leasehold flat in Cippenham. We have hit a snag. The loan offer with Halifax runs out on 14/7/2025 but the sellers are suggesting a completion date of 16/7/2025. Is it possible to prolong the loan expiry date?
The person best placed to deal with your question is your conveyancer who is in a position to assess if they better off negotiating with the mortgage broker, vendor’s conveyancers, property agents or possibly all parties given what has gone on in your conveyancing as of today.
The Cippenham conveyancing firm that I appointed last week on my purchase in Cippenham have without warning shut down. I only went with them because I needed a firm on the Santander conveyancing panel and my family Cippenham lawyer was not. I issued them a cheque for two hundred pounds in advance. What do I do now?
If you have an estate agent involved then inform them immediately so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Most sellers would be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Santander conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new solicitors should be in a position to assist.
What is the difference between a licensed conveyancer and conveyancing solicitor in Cippenham
There are many registered licenced Conveyancers in Cippenham and Solicitor practices in Cippenham offering conveyancing It is important to make clear that both are regulated professionals specialising in the legal aspects of transferring property. They may both also conduct other property legal work such as remortgage conveyancing, lease extensions and transfer of equity conveyancing.
We had appointed conveyancing lawyers located in Cippenham on the Skipton solicitor approved list. They have just invoiced me a separate amount for dealing with the Skipton mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by Skipton?
As unfair as it may appear, as long as it’s in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your conveyancer is entitled to charge a fee for this. The charge is not set by Skipton but by your Cippenham solicitor. Numerous firms on the Skipton panel will levy ’dealing with mortgage’ fee but many practices include it on their overall fee.
My fiancee and I are in the process of viewing apartments in Cippenham and I am about to put in an offer. Is it best to have a conveyancing practitioner on ‘stand by’? I intend to finance via a home loan with HSBC.
It would be sensible to instigate your search sooner rather than later. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their details on to the EA. As you are getting a mortgage with HSBC, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the HSBC conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.
Am I better off to use a Cippenham conveyancing lawyer in close proximity to the house I am buying? I have an old university friend who can perform the legal formalities however his firm is located 300kilometers drive away.
The benefit of a local Cippenham conveyancing practice is that you can pop in to sign documents, hand in your identification documents and pester them where appropriate. Having local Cippenham know how is a benefit. However nothing is more important than finding someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If if people you trust instructed your friend and the majority were content that must outweigh using an unfamiliar Cippenham conveyancing solicitor just because they are local.
One month into a sale of a flat in Cippenham. Conveyancing lawyers are doing their job but we are being charged a fortune by the freeholder. To date we have forked out £295.50 for a leasehold management information and then a further £117.20 for additional queries supplied by the purchaser's property lawyer.
Your conveyancer will not have any impact over the extent of the fee for this information but the typical fee for the information for Cippenham leasehold premises is £395. When it comes to Cippenham conveyancing transactions it is usual for the owner to cover the costs. The freeholder or their agents are not duty bound to address these questions although many will agree to do so - albeit often at high prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no statute that mandates set charges for administrative tasks. There is no prescriptive time limit by which they are duty bound to issue the information.