I am in the process of selling my home in Deanshanger and the EA has just text me to say that the buyers are appointing a new property lawyer. The reason given is that the mortgage company will only work with solicitors on their approved list. On what basis would a big named lender only work with certain law firms rather the firm that they want to choose for their conveyancing in Deanshanger ?
Mortgage companies have always had panels of law firms that can represent them, but in the past few years big names such as HSBC, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for many years.
Lenders justify this action to a rise in fraud as the reason for the pruning – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. Banks tend not to reveal how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your buyers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.
My husband and I wish to acquire a newbuild apartment in Deanshanger with a homeloan from The Royal Bank of Scotland.We would like to retain our Deanshanger conveyancing solicitor but The Royal Bank of Scotland says she’s not listed on their approved list of member firms. we are left little option but to use a The Royal Bank of Scotland panel solicitor or retain our preferred solicitor and fork out for one of their panel ones to represent them. We feel as though this is unjust; Can we not simply insist that The Royal Bank of Scotland use our lawyer?
Unfortunately,no. The loan offered to you is subject to its various provisions, a common one being that lawyers needs to be on the The Royal Bank of Scotland conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of solicitors 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 lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for The Royal Bank of Scotland
I am helping my mother sell her flat in Deanshanger. Does the conveyancing solicitor commission an EPC or should I organise this?
Following the demise of Home Packs, energy performance certificates remained a required component of selling a property. An energy performance certificate needs to be commissioned prior to the property being put on the market. It is not as aspect of the sale process that lawyers normally organise. Where you are instructing a Deanshanger conveyancing solicitor they may be willing to arrange energy performance certificates due to their relationships with long established local assessors
After months of negotiation I have agreed a price on a house in Deanshanger. My mortgage broker pressured me to appoint their property lawyer. I paid an on account payment of £200. Not long after, the conveyancing practitioner called me embarrassingly acknowledging that they were not on the Kent Reliance 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 Kent Reliance 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've digested plenty of mortgage guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Deanshanger solicitor - who is on the Skipton conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. is that correct?
Skipton will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Skipton 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 property 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 Deanshanger postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Skipton, you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Deanshanger.
I am looking for a flat up to £245,000 and identified one close by in Deanshanger I like with open areas and railway links nearby, the downside is that it only has 52 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Deanshanger in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?
Should you need a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be problematic. Discount the price by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer regarding this matter.
I need to instruct a conveyancing solicitor for sale conveyancing in Deanshanger. I have chance upon a web site which looks to be the ideal solution If it is possible to get all the legals done via web that would be preferable. Should I be wary? What should out be looking out for?
As usual with these online conveyancers you need to read ALL the small print - did you notice the extra charge for dealing with the mortgage?
Back In 2001, I bought a leasehold flat in Deanshanger. Conveyancing and Britannia mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Deanshanger who previously acted has now retired. Any advice?
The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to incur the fees of a Deanshanger conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.
I purchased a 1st floor flat in Deanshanger, conveyancing formalities finalised September 2008. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Comparable properties in Deanshanger with an extended lease are worth £179,000. The ground rent is £65 charged once a year. The lease ends on 21st October 2082
With just 57 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £26,600 and £30,800 as well as costs.
The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.