It has come to my attention via my financial adviser that my Deptford lawyer is not on the mortgage company Conveyancing panel. What can I do to be sure whether this is correct?
The first thing you need to do is to call your Deptford lawyer directly. It is reasonable to expect your lawyer to notify you of the situation. If they are not on the panel they may recommend you to a Deptford conveyancing firm that is on the conveyancing panel for your mortgage company.
My wife and I are buying a brand new flat in Deptford and my solicitor is telling me that she has to the mortgage company to disclose incentives from the seller. I am on a tight deadline to exchange and I don't want to prolong deal. is my lawyer playing by the book?
You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your conveyancer. A precondition to being on a lender panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.
Please explain the implications if my solicitor is suspended from the Barclays Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Deptford?
The first thing to point out is that, this is a very rare occurrence. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit for a fee.
I happen to be the sole beneficiary of my late father’s estate with all property in now in my sole name, including the my former home in Deptford. The Deptford property was put into my name in December. I plan to dispose of the property. I understand that there is a CML six month 'rule', which means that my proprietorship could be regarded the same way as if I'd bought the property in December. Do I have to wait half a year to sell?
The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook instructs solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you may be affected by that. many lenders would take a practical view as this clause is principally there to capture the purchase and immediately sell or the wholesaling and assigning of properties.
When it comes to mortgage companies such as Virgin Money, do Deptford solicitors have to pay an annual charge to be on the conveyancing panel?
We are not aware of any bank fees to register on their list of approved firms, although some do charge an administration fee to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.
The mortgage over my property is with Principality for my property in Deptford. Conveyancing has been completed a year ago. Should I wish to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Principality?
Your original mortgage agreement with Principality will provide that you need their approval prior to renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of Principality’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Principality will allow you to rent 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 Principality directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Principality conveyancing panel lawyer.
Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my house are lost. The conveyancers who dealt with the conveyancing in Deptford 4 years ago no longer exist. What are my options?
Assuming you have a registered title the details of your ownership will be retained by the Land Registry with a Title Number. It is possible to conduct a search at the Land Registry, locate your house and secure up to date copies of the property title for less than a fiver. Where the property is Leasehold then the Land Registry will also normally retain a certified duplicate of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be ordered for a small fee.
My father-in-law has recommend that I instruct his conveyancing solicitors in Deptford. Should I use them?
No doubt the best way to find a conveyancing lawyer is to seek guidance from friends or family who have previously instructed the firm that you are contemplating using.