My wife and I are hoping to buy a home in Felinheli and have instructed a Felinheli conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our conveyancer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Barclays have this morning contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Felinheli 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 normal for the purchasers' solicitors to also represent 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 property lawyer should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Felinheli solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
I am getting closer to an exchange on a house in Felinheli and my parents have sent the exchange deposit to my conveyancer. I am now told that as the deposit has not come from me my conveyancer needs to make a notification to my mortgage company. Apparently, in also acting for the bank he must inform them that the balance of the purchase price is not just from me. I informed the lender about my parents' contribution when I applied for the mortgage, so is it really necessary for this now to hold matters up?
Your conveyancer is obliged to check with lender to ensure that they are aware that the balance of the purchase price is not from your own funds. Your solicitor can only disclose this to your mortgage company if you agree, failing which, your lawyer must cease to continue acting.
I own a freehold residence in Felinheli but nevertheless pay rent, why is this and what is this?
It’s unusual for properties in Felinheli and has limited impact for conveyancing in Felinheli but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.
Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges have existed for hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the establishment of new rentcharges from 1977 onwards.
Old rentcharges can now be redeemed by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence in 2037 will be extinguished.
I am told that my conveyancing solicitors will need to check that the building insurance for my purchase of a house in Felinheli. My lender is Platform
Platform have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook. As of 22/11/2024, the requirements read as follows :
A colleague informed me that in buying a property in Felinheli there may be a number of restrictions limiting what one can do in terms of external alterations to a property. Is this right?
There are a number of properties in Felinheli which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to carry out external variations. Part of the conveyancing in Felinheli should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.
Can I be sure that the Felinheli conveyancing solicitor on the Aldermore panel is any good?
When it comes to conveyancing in Felinheli getting recommendations is a good starting point. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one advertising the lowest fees. We would always advise that you speak with the solicitor conducting your transaction.
We are getting a further advance on our mortgage from Co-operative as we intend to carry out alterations to our property in Felinheli. Do we need to appoint a nearby Felinheli solicitor on the Co-operative conveyancing panel to handle the legals?
Co-operative don't usually require firms on their conveyancing panel to handle such a matter. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Co-operative list.
I decided to have a survey carried out on a house in Felinheli before appointing conveyancers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. Our surveyor has said that some banks tend refuse to issue a loan on this type of home.
It varies from the lender to lender. HSBC has different instructions from Birmingham Midshires. If you e-mail us we can look into this further with the relevant bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Felinheli. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Felinheli to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.