I am progressing with the sale of my home in Fishponds and the estate agent has just e-mailed to say 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 major lender only deal with specific law firms rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Fishponds ?
Lenders have always had panels of law firms that can act for them, but in the past few 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 over 25 years.
Lending institutions blame a rise in fraud as the reason for the cull – criteria have been tightened 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 not going to have any impact on this.
In what way does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in Fishponds? Why is this being asked of me?
Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering rules require solicitors and licensed conveyancers to check the identification documents of the potential client they are dealing with before they can accept their conveyancing instruction. The Client Care letter that you are required to sign should stipulate this. Your lender will also require certain documents to be viewed. Should you refuse to supply ID verification documents, your lawyer can not take you on as a client.
I opted to have a survey done on a property in Fishponds before appointing conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold aspect to the house. My surveyor advised that some mortgage companies may not issue a mortgage on such a home.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Lloyds has different requirements for example to Nationwide. Should you wish to telephone us we can investigate further with the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Fishponds. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Fishponds to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.
Taking into account that I am about to spend £400,000 on a house in Fishponds I wish to talk to a lawyer about mytransaction prior to giving the go ahead to the firm. Can this be arranged?
This is something that we encourage - we would be delighted to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you first talking to the solicitor who will be conducting your conveyancing in Fishponds.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - every client is an important person, not a file reference. The practices that we put you in touch with believe that the figure you are calculated and presented to you for residential conveyancing in Fishponds should be the figure that you are charged.
I need to find a conveyancing solicitor for my conveyancing in Fishponds. I happened to discover a web site which seems to have the ideal answer If it is possible to get all this stuff completed via phone that would be ideal. Do I need to be wary? What should out be looking out for?
As usual with these online conveyancers you need to read ALL the small print - did you notice the extra charge for dealing with the mortgage?
Why do Fishponds conveyancing fees are higher for leasehold and freehold properties?
There is always increased work needed in leasehold conveyancing. Fishponds has many leasehold properties. There is more hours involved in the purchase: for example, the lease and leasehold information (including up to date service charge, ground rent and buildings insurance details) obtained from the freeholder or managing agents. There are strict criteria that the lease must meet in order to be acceptable to a mortgage company. If it does not meet these requirements, the lease must be amended, which can involve additional expense for the seller.