I am getting a mortgage offer from Lloyds. I intend to retain the legal services of a Licensed Conveyancer in Essex. Does the Lloyds Solicitor panel allow for conveyancers regulated by the CLC?
The Lloyds approved solicitor list is, like many other lenders, associated to the Council or Mortgage Lenders or Building Society Association, open to Licensed Conveyancers regulated by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
Are the Essex conveyancing solicitors identified as being on the Co-operative conveyancing panel, together with their details provided by Co-operative?
Essex conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Co-operative conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Co-operative directly.
I am planning to acquire a house and need a conveyancing solicitor in Essex who is on the Accord Mortgages Ltd approved. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a firm?
Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Accord Mortgages Ltd in certain locations such as Essex. We dont recommend any particular firm.
We previously selected conveyancing lawyers with offices in Essex on the Leeds Building Society solicitor panel. They have just invoiced me a separate charge for dealing with the Leeds Building Society mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by Leeds Building Society?
As unfair as it may seem, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your solicitor may charge a fee for this. The fee is not dictated by Leeds Building Society but by your Essex conveyancer. Numerous firms on the Leeds Building Society panel will quote an ‘acting for lender’ fee but some practices include it on their overall fee.
I've read lots of house buying guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Essex 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 normal?
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. You may wish to consider appointing your own Essex 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.
Lloyds have agreed my home loan in principle, my bid on a flat in Essex has been accepted, what happens next?
Your estate agent will need to be advised as to your solicitor's details (ensure that the property lawyers are on the bank’s approved list). Contact Lloyds or your broker and complete any relevant documentation. Lloyds will appoint a valuer who will get in touch with the estate agent or vendor to schedule a time for the valuation to occur. Once carried out (assuming no problems) it takes about a fortnight to receive the mortgage offer. Lloyds will send the offer to you and your solicitors. The legal work will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing in Essex.
Will commercial conveyancing searches reveal impending roadworks that could affect a commercial land in Essex?
Its becoming the norm that commercial conveyancing solicitors in Essex will carry out a SiteSolutions Highways report as it dramatically cuts the time that conveyancers expend in investigating accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Essex. The search result provides definitive data on the adoption status of roads, footpaths and verges, as well as the implication of traffic schemes and the rights of way surrounding a commercial development sites in Essex.
For every commercial conveyancing transaction in Essex it is critical to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. Failure to identify developments where adoption procedures have not been addressed adequately can result in delays to Essex commercial conveyancing transactions as well as pose a risk to future plans for the site. These searches are not conducted for residential conveyancing in Essex.
My husband and I are FTB’s - had an offer accepted, yet the property agent informed us that the seller will only issue a contract if we appoint the agent's recommended conveyancers as they need a ‘quick sale’. We would rather use a local solicitor with experience of conveyancing in Essex
It is highly unlikely the vendors are behind this. If they require ‘a quick sale', taking such a hostile approach to a motivated buyer is counter productive. Bypass the agents and go straight to the sellers and make the point that (a)you are keen to buy (b)you are ready to go, with mortgage lined up © you have nothing to sell (d) you wish to move quickly (e)however you are going to use your own,trusted Essex conveyancing firm - not the ones that will earn the estate agent a referral fee or meet his conveyancing figures pre-set by senior management.