My husband and I are buying a 1 bedroom apartment in Daventry with a mortgage. We wish to retain our Daventry conveyancer, however the lender says he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the mortgage company panel conveyancing practices or continue with our Daventry lawyer and pay for one of their panel firms to represent them. This feels very unfair; is there anything we can do?
Unfortunately,no. Your mortgage offer 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. A further alternative is for your Daventry conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
is it true that all Daventry solicitor practices on the Lloyds conveyancing panel are governed by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the Lloyds conveyancing panel they would need to be regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. Some banks do allow licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such practice would be overseen by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
The formalities of my purchase has taken place for my property in Daventry. Conveyancing was a necessary evil but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. How does one go about formally complaining?
Most banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Team at head office. In most cases complaints to a lender are resolved effectively and efficiently. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service who will take matters further.
I recently had an offer agreed on an apartment in Daventry. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their lawyer. I paid an upfront payment of £200. Not long after, the lawyer called me embarrassingly acknowledging that they were not on the UBS conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the UBS panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.
I used Wolstenholmes a few years ago for my conveyancing in Daventry. Now, I need my files but the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?
You should call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracking down 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 Daventry of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously retained, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
Given that I am about to part with hundreds of thousands of pounds on a two bedroom apartment in Daventry I wish to have a conversation with the solicitor regarding theconveyancing ahead of appointing the firm. Can this be arranged?
We could not agree more - we would be happy to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you first talking to the conveyancer who will be doing your property ownership legalities in Daventry.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is an important person, not a case number. The law firms that we put you in touch with believe that the fees you are quoted for your conveyancing in Daventry should be the amount on the final invoice that you end up paying.
My husband and I are a fortnight into a residential purchase having been referred to conveyancers by the selling agent to carry out the conveyancing in Daventry. I am am extremely frustrated with the quality of service. Can you help me find new solicitors?
A conveyancer would have to be really poor in order to consider diss instructing them. Has the mortgage been issued? If so you will need to advise them of the new contact details and ensure the offer are issued to the new lawyers. Your new conveyancer should be on the lenders approved list to avoid supplemental charges and complications. So that should be your first question of the new lawyers. The find a solicitor tool will assist you in finding a bank approved lawyer for your home move in Daventry
We are midway through purchasing a house in Daventry. Conveyancing solicitor has phoned to say the title is "Leasehold". Should this make a difference on our lender’s valuation?
Daventry conveyancing does not in most situations involve leasehold houses. The key consideration here is the remaining lease term and the ground rent. If there are over a hundred years remaining with a peppercorn rent, it's essentially freehold, so it shouldn't impact the marketability too much.
On the flip side, if it's, say, fifty five years it is bound to have a significant impact on the saleability, and most likely wouldn't be mortgageable. The remaining lease term and ground rent will be set out in the lease to be supplied to your lawyer.