We are planning to acquire a 3 bedroom flat in Clifton Village with a mortgage. We have a Clifton Village lawyer, however the mortgage company advise he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the bank panel conveyancing practices or retain our Clifton Village lawyer and pay for one of their panel ones to act for them. This seems very unfair; is there anything we can do?
No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your Clifton Village conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
We see that you have a search directory listing law firms on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel. Do firms pay you a commission if I appoint them for our own conveyancing in Clifton Village?
We are a listing service only for law firms wishing to communicate if they are on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel or other lender panels. We do not charge referral fees to any conveyancer that you subsequently appoint for your conveyancing in Clifton Village.
I have an AIP. The lender mentioned the home loan came with free conveyancing. Is the implication that I have to instruct their panel conveyancer as I would much rather use a Clifton Village based conveyancing firm?
Do check but the the likelihood is that appoint one of their panel solicitors if you take up the "fee-free" incentive. Contact the lender to check if they make available a cash alternative. It is not unheard for a lender to give a £250 cashback as a further option in which case that money can go towards the cost for your conveyancing solicitor near Clifton Village.
I need some fast conveyancing in Clifton Village as I am under pressure to exchange contracts within 3 weeks. A home loan is not required. Is it possible to decline from having conveyancing searches to save fees and time?
If.Given you are not obtaining a home loan you are at free not to do searches although no solicitor would advise that you don't. With plenty of history conveyancing in Clifton Village the following are examples of what can appear and adversely impact market value: Enforcement Notices, Outstanding Charges, Outstanding Grants, Road Schemes,...
My wife and I own a renovated Victorian property in Clifton Village. Conveyancing practitioner acted for me and HSBC Bank. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and there are two entries: the first freehold, another for leasehold under the matching property. Is it worth asking HSBC Bank to clarify?
You need to read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Clifton Village and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they remortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with buyers. You can also check the position with your conveyancing lawyer who conducted the conveyancing.
I am purchasing my first flat in Clifton Village benefiting from help to buy. The sellers would not reduce the amount so I negotiated £7000 of fixtures and fittings instead. The sale representative advised me not disclose to my lawyer about this extras as it could put at risk my mortgage with the lender. Is this normal?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.