It is is a decade since I purchased my house in Dartmouth. Conveyancing lawyers have recently been instructed on the sale but I am unable to track down my deeds. Will this jeopardise the sale?
Don’t worry too much. Firstly there is a possibility that the deeds will be kept by your mortgage company or they may be in the possession of the lawyers who oversaw the purchase. Secondly in most cases the title will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to prove you own the property by your conveyancing solicitors obtaining current official copies of the land registers. Nearly all conveyancing in Dartmouth relates to registered property but in the unlikely event that your property is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is not insurmountable.
We had appointed conveyancers based in Dartmouth on the Barclays solicitor panel. They have just billed me an additional amount for dealing with the Barclays mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by Barclays?
Provided it is contained in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your conveyancer can charge a fee for this. This fee is not dictated by Barclays but by your Dartmouth lawyer. Plenty of firms on the Barclays panel will quote an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.
I've read lots of house buying guides, I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Dartmouth solicitor - who is on the Lloyds conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?
Lloyds will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Lloyds will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. Your lawyer will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by your Dartmouth postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Lloyds, you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Dartmouth.
Nationwide have agreed my mortgage in principle, my offer on a flat in Dartmouth has been accepted, what happens next?
The estate agent will need to be advised as to your solicitor's details (be sure the conveyancing practitioners are on the bank’s panel). Call up Nationwide or the broker and complete any relevant forms. Nationwide will appoint a valuer who will get in contact with the estate agent or vendor to book an appointment. Once conducted (assuming no problems) it takes approximately a week to receive the mortgage offer. Nationwide will send the offer to you and your conveyancers. The transaction will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing in Dartmouth.
A friend suggested that if I am purchasing in Dartmouth I should ask my conveyancer to carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
A search of this type is sometimes quoted for as part of the standard Dartmouth conveyancing searches. It is not a small report of about 40 pages, listing and detailing important information about Dartmouth around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime details, Dartmouth Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information regarding Dartmouth.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified during conveyancing in Dartmouth?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Dartmouth. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
In my capacity as executor for the estate of my grandmother I am disposing of a property in Cardiff but reside in Dartmouth. My conveyancer (based 235 kilometers from merequires that I execute a stat dec prior to completion. Could you suggest a conveyancing lawyer in Dartmouth to witness and place their company stamp on the document?
Technically speaking you are not likely to be required to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily or notary public or solicitor will be fine regardless of whether they are located in Dartmouth
My brother mentioned that before choosing a conveyancing lawyer they must be approved by your lender. I am first time buyer with but I have an offer in principle with Virgin Money and I already have a bricks and morter conveyancing lawyer in Dartmouth on standby. Can Nat West Bank require an approved conveyancer to be selected? If so, where do I find that list for my conveyancing in Dartmouth?
You should choose a solicitor that is on the Nat West Bank panel. Simply ring your preferred Dartmouth conveyancing solicitor and ask if they are on the Nat West Bank panel. If they are not approved you have numerous choices available to you here:
- Complete the purchase with your preferred Dartmouth lawyer but Nat West Bank will no doubt appoint a solicitor from their conveyancing panel. This will result in additional cost and likely frustration.
- Appoint a fresh lawyer to act in the purchase, obviously checking they are on the Nat West Bank conveyancing panel.
- Appeal to your solicitor to attempt to join the lender panel.