I am selling my house in Cottenham. Will my conveyancing practitioner need to be on the Barclays conveyancing panel in order to deal with paying off my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Barclays 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 requirements fairly frequently currently.
Last month we had a mortgage agreed in principle with TSB. Cottenham conveyancing practitioners are selected. How long does it take for TSB to issue the offer to the conveyancer?
Some lenders take longer than others. Have TSB done the valuation? Have you advised TSB as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the TSB conveyancing panel? Sometimes it can take as long as six weeks for a mortgage offer to be issued.
I have paid off my mortgage with Barclays. I assume I don't need a Cottenham property lawyer on the Barclays panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.
If you have finished paying off your Barclays mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Barclays mortgage from the register. Barclays, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Barclays has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Barclays has instructed the Land Registry to do so
I have a mortgage with Clydesdale for my property in Cottenham. Conveyancing was finalised some time ago. Should I wish to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Clydesdale?
You must advise Clydesdale before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Clydesdale’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Clydesdale will permit you to let 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 Clydesdale directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Clydesdale conveyancing panel lawyer.
I have todaydiscovered that Stirling Law have been shut down. They conducted my conveyancing in Cottenham for a purchase of a leasehold apartment 18 months ago. How can I be sure that the property is registered correctly in the name of the former proprietor?
The easiest way to see if the property is in your name, you can make a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Cottenham conveyancing specialists.
Due to the advice of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a property in Cottenham before retaining lawyers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold aspect to the house. The surveyor has said that some mortgage companies tend refuse to grant a mortgage on this type of premises.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Santander has different requirements from Halifax. Should you wish to telephone us we can check via the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Cottenham. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
Am I best advised to go with a Cottenham conveyancing practitioner based in the location that I am purchasing? I have an old university friend who can carry out the legal work however they are based approximately 350kilometers drive away.
The benefit of a local Cottenham conveyancing practice is that you can drop in to sign documents, present your identification documents and apply pressure on them where appropriate. Having local Cottenham know how is a plus. That being said it's more important to get someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If other friends have used your friend and in the main were happy that must outweigh using an unknown Cottenham conveyancing solicitor just because they are Cottenham based.
I am an executor of my recently deceased parent's Will, with a bungalow in Cottenham which will be sold. The bungalow has never been registered at the Land Registry and I'm advised that many EAs will insist that it is done before they will move forward. What's the mechanism for this?
In the situation that you have set out it seems sensible to seek to register in the names of the personal representative(s) as named in the probate and in their capacity as PRs. The Land Registry’s online guidance explains how to register for the first time and what is required re the deeds and forms. You would need to include and certified copy of the probate as well and complete the form FR1 to refer to the PRs as the applicant.