My husband and I are hoping to acquire a home in Grantham and have appointed a Grantham conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our property lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Bank of Scotland have this morning contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Grantham solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is conventional 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 Quality Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your lender 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 as you are at liberty to use your preferred Grantham lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
My son is buying a newly built flat in Grantham with a mortgage from RBS. His lawyer has advised him of a delay in completing the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. Who needs to receive the form?
The document is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the RBS conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the valuer when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the RBS conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
I am looking to buy a property and need a conveyancing solicitor in Grantham who is on the Bank of Scotland solicitor. Can you recommend a local conveyancing firm?
Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Bank of Scotland in certain locations such as Grantham. We dont recommend any particular firm.
I am helping my aunt sell her property in Grantham. Does the solicitor commission the energy performance certificate or it is for the owner to coordinate?
After the abolition of Home Packs, EPC’s became a mandatory element of selling a property. An energy assessment must be commissioned before the property is advertised. This is not something that solicitors normally arrange. Where you are using a Grantham conveyancing practitioner they may be able to arrange EPC’s given their relationships with long established Grantham energy assessors
Two weeks ago we had a mortgage agreed in principle with RBS. Grantham conveyancing lawyers were selected. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from RBS?
Some lenders take longer than others. Have RBS done the survey? Have you advised RBS as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the RBS conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.
It is unclear whether my lender obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have called into my local Grantham building society branch on numerous occasions and was told it does not affect the mortgage offer and they will lend. My Grantham conveyancing solicitor - who is on the lender conveyancing panel- called to say that they refuse to lend in accordance with their published requirements. I have no idea who is right.
As long as the solicitor is on the bank panel, they must follow the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook provisions for the lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the lender 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 lender to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
Me and my brother have a renovated Victorian property in Grantham. Conveyancing solicitor acted for me and Accord Mortgages Ltd. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw two entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold under the matching property. I'd like to know for sure, how can I find out??
You need to read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Grantham and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with mortgage companies. You can also question the position with the conveyancing lawyer who conducted the conveyancing.
I opted to have a survey carried out on a property in Grantham ahead of retaining lawyers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold overhang to the house. The surveyor advised that some lenders tend refuse to give a mortgage on a flying freehold home.
It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different instructions for example to Nationwide. Should you wish to call us we can look into this further via the appropriate lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Grantham. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Grantham to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.