My husband and I are planning to acquire a property in Exeter and have appointed a Exeter conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our solicitor has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Santander have this afternoon contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Exeter solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Exeter solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
What does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in Exeter? Why is this being asked of me?
Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering regulations require solicitors and licensed conveyancers to check the identification documents of the person or body they are dealing with prior to agreeing to accepting their conveyancing business. The Client Care letter that you are required to sign should stipulate this. Your lawyer also has obligations to obtain certain documents in accordance with the CML Lenders Handbook requirements last updated on 1st December 2014. If you refuse to provide ID verification documents, your lawyer would not be able to accept instructions from you.
I have decided to exercise my right to buy my property in Exeter off the council. I have a mortgage agreed with Virgin Money. Conveyancing is not something I have any knowledge of. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should have one. Any advice?
It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with Virgin Money, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel.
It is not clear whether my bank obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have telephoned my Exeter building society branch on numerous occasions and was told they are content with the situation and they would lend. My Exeter conveyancing solicitor - who is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel- telephoned and was told they refuse to lend in accordance with their published requirements. Who do I believe?
The conveyancer must follow the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook Part 2 requirements for your lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the bank will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the bank to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years remaining.
Our sealed bid on a house in Exeter has been accepted, the owners do however have an associated purchase. The vendors have put an offer on somewhere, however it’s not been accepted yet, and have viewings of other apartments in the pipeline. I have chosen a local conveyancing solicitor in Exeter. What do I do now? At what stage should I apply for the mortgage with Nottingham?
It is normal to have anxieties where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur expenses too early (home loan application is in the region of £1k, then survey, Exeter conveyancing search charges, etc). First, you should ensure that your conveyancer is on the Nottingham approved list. Regarding the subsequent stages this very much depends on the uniqueness of your case, motivation for this property and on the state of the market. During a rising market the majority of home buyers will apply for the mortgage with Nottingham and arrange for the valuation and only if it was satisfactory would they pay their conveyancer to proceed with the conveyancing in Exeter.
I completed on my house on 3 September and my personal details is yet to be on the land registry website. Should I be concerned? My conveyancing solicitor in Exeter said it will be dealt with inside ten days. Are properties in Exeter particularly slow to register?
There is nothing unique when it comes to conveyancing in Exeter registration formalities. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timescales can adjust according to who lodges the application, whether there are errors and whether the Land registry need to notify any 3rd parties. Currently approximately 80% of such applications are completed within 12 days but some can be subject to longer hold-ups. Registration occurs after the purchaser has moved in to the premises therefore post completion formalities is not usually top priority yet if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your solicitor could communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for the application to be prioritised.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I put an offer in two weeks back in what was supposed to be a simple, no chain conveyancing. Exeter is the location of the property. Can you offer any assistance?
Flying freeholds in Exeter are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Exeter you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds very carefully. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Exeter may determine 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 premises.
I am using a search engine for the phrase conveyancing in Exeter it shows results of numerous conveyancersin the area. How do I determine which is the suitable conveyancer for purchase transaction?
The preferential way of choosing the right conveyancer is via trusted testimonial, so seek the opinion of friends and those you trust who have purchased a property in Exeter or the respected estate agent or mortgage broker. Charges for conveyancing in Exeter differ, so it's sensible to request a minimum of four fee calculations from different conveyancers. Dont forget to clarify that the costs are guaranteed not to escalate.