I am in the process of selling my house in Faversham and the estate agent has just called to warn that the purchasers are swapping conveyancer. The reason given is that the mortgage company will only work with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. Why would a big named lender only deal with specific law firms rather the firm that they want to appoint for their conveyancing in Faversham ?
UK lenders have always had an approved set of law firms that can act for them, but in recent 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 more than 25 years.
Lending institutions point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to keep an eye on. 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 are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The buyers are unlikely to have any impact on this.
Do I find a Licenced Conveyancer or Solicitor for conveyancing in Faversham?
There are many registered licenced Conveyancers in Faversham and Solicitor partnerships in Faversham to choose from It is important to make clear that the two are regulated professionals specialising in the legal aspects of transferring property. They may both also deal with associated property related work such as remortgage conveyancing, lease extensions and transfer of equity conveyancing.
My wife and I buying a end of terrace house in Faversham. Our aim is to carry out an extension to the side at the house.Will the conveyancing process include investigations to determine if these alterations are prohibited?
Your conveyancer should review the registered title as conveyancing in Faversham can on occasion reveal restrictions in the title deeds which restrict certain alterations or require the consent of a 3rd party. Many extensions call for local authority planning consent and approval in accordance building regulations. Some locations are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which often prevent or impact extensions. You should check these things with a surveyor prior to committing yourself to a purchase.
I recently had an offer accepted on a house in Faversham. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their conveyancer. I paid an advanced payment of £150. A few days later, the property lawyer called me to say that they were not on the TSB 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 TSB 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.
My partner and I are close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our property in Faversham and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a risk of it being constructed land that was not decontaminated. A local lawyer would know this is not the case. It does beg the question why the purchasers used an online conveyancing practice as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Faversham. Having lived in Faversham for six years we know that this is a non issue. Should we get in touch with our local Authority to get confirmation that there is no issue.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing firm already. Are they able to advise? You should check with your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same ailment)
It has been 4 months since my purchase conveyancing in Faversham concluded. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £200,000 when infact I paid £215,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the property from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £195,000 and identified one round the corner in Faversham I like with amenity areas and railway links nearby, however it's only got 61 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Faversham suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a short lease?
If you require a home loan the shortness of the lease will likely be an issue. Discount the price by the expected lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer regarding this matter.
My fiance is purchasing a leasehold flat in Faversham. He was given a quote by the solicitor recommended by the estate agents and it came to £1245 . It was seven years ago since I sold and purchased a house and the fee was £500. Have fees really gone up that much?
We would recommend that you contact 3 or 4 local Faversham conveyancing firms requesting prices. It is advisable to base your decision not just on cost, but on promptness and on how comprehensive the reply is.