We are getting a further advance on our home loan from Lloyds as we want to carry out a loft conversion to our property in Dartmouth. Are we obliged to choose a nearby Dartmouth solicitor on the Lloyds conveyancing panel to handle the legals?
Lloyds do not ordinarily require firms on their approved list of lawyers to deal with such a matter. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Lloyds conveyancing panel.
I'm spending time looking at flats in Dartmouth and I am now considering a potential offer. Is it best to have a conveyancer on ‘stand by’? I intend to finance via a home loan with TSB.
You should start obtaining conveyancing estimates from solicitors ASAP. 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 estate agent. Given that you are obtaining a mortgage with TSB, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the TSB conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.
I've read lots of mortgage 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 Clydesdale conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?
Clydesdale will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Clydesdale 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. You may wish to consider appointing your own Dartmouth surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
We are planning on selling our property in Dartmouth and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a possibility that the property was constructed on contaminated land. A high street Dartmouth lawyer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers used an online conveyancing firm as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Dartmouth. Having lived in Dartmouth for many years we know that this is a non issue. Is it a good idea to contact our local Authority to get clarification that there is no issue.
It would appear that you have a conveyancing lawyer currently acting for you. What do they say? You should enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same ailment)
I used Stirling Law a few years past for my conveyancing in Dartmouth. Now, I need my files but the law firm has closed. What do I do?
Do call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate 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 Dartmouth of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously hired, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £195,000 and identified one near me in Dartmouth I like with a park and station nearby, the downside is that it's only got 61 years on the lease. There is not much else in Dartmouth suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a short lease?
If you require a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term will be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current owner has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you can ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer concerning this matter.
I was advised by numerous property agents in Dartmouth to get a quote from a property lawyer using your seach tool. Is there a financial advantage for Estate Agents to promote your site over a competitor’s?
We refuse to offer any commission for directing people to this site. We found it would be just too difficult to pay a commission because a client could think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not getting any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.
Am I best advised to go with a Dartmouth conveyancing lawyer in close proximity to the house I am hoping to buy? We have a good friend who can conduct the legal formalities but they are based 400miles drive away.
The primary upside of using a high street Dartmouth conveyancing firm is that you can visit the firm to execute documents, present your ID and apply pressure on them if necessary. Having local Dartmouth know how is a plus. However nothing is more important than finding someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If you know people who instructed your friend and on the whole were content that must outweigh using an unknown Dartmouth conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being round the corner.