I am selling my maisonette in East Grinstead and the EA has just called to advise that the purchasers are swapping law firm. I am told that this is due to the fact that the lender will only work with property lawyers 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 select for their conveyancing in East Grinstead ?
Banks have always had panels of law firms they are content to work with, but in the last few years big names such as HSBC, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for decades.
Mortgage companies blame a rise in fraud as the reason for the pruning – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is being contacted daily by practices 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 impact on this.
My partner and I are refinancing our flat in East Grinstead with Principality. We have a son approaching twenty who lives at home. Our solicitor requested us to identify anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who reside at the property. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the property is forfeited by the lender. I have two questions (1) Is this form unique to the Principality conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we remortgaged 4 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this compromise his rights to inherit the property?
First, rest assured that your Principality conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Principality. This is solely used to protect Principality if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Principality had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
I had intended to instruct a conveyancing solicitor in East Grinstead for our house move. Our broker informed us that our bank Lloyds TSB Bank won't deal with them. Why is this not regarded as unduly restrictive?
A mortgage company will require a panel solicitor act for it. Borrowers are liable to meet the charges for this. Try using our search facility to locate a solicitor to conduct conveyancing in East Grinstead on the Lloyds TSB Bank approved list of solicitors.
I used Stirling Law several years ago for my conveyancing in East Grinstead. Now, I need my documents however the law firm has closed. What do I do?
Do contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracing 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 East Grinstead 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.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I have offered on last month in what should have been a simple, no chain conveyancing. East Grinstead is the location of the property. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in East Grinstead are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside East Grinstead you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds thoroughly. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in East Grinstead may ascertain that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.
In what way does the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 affect my business property in East Grinstead and how can your lawyers assist?
The 1954 Act provides protection to business lessees, granting the right to make a request to court for a continuation of occupancy at the end of an expired lease. There are certain specified grounds that a landlord can refrain from granting a lease renewal and the rules are complex. Fees are different for commercial conveyancing. East Grinstead is one of our numerous areas of the UK in which the firms we work with have offices