I am in the process of selling my flat in Gravesend and the EA has just e-mailed to advise that the purchasers are switching solicitor. The reason given is that the mortgage company will only engage with solicitors on their approved list. On what basis would a leading mortgage company only work with certain lawyers rather the firm that they want to select to handle their conveyancing in Gravesend ?
UK lenders have always had panels of law firms that can act for them, but in recent years big names such as Yorkshire Building Society, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for more than 15 years.
Mortgage companies point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. Banks tend not to disclose how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is hearing daily from firms 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 purchasers are not going to have any impact on this.
We are hoping to buy a 1 bedroom flat in Gravesend with a mortgage from Alliance & Leicester .We would like to retain our Gravesend conveyancing lawyer but Alliance & Leicester informed us his firm is not listed on their approved list of member firms. we are left little option but to use a Alliance & Leicester panel solicitor or retain our preferred solicitor and fork out for a Alliance & Leicester panel lawyer to represent them. This seems very unfair; Can we not simply insist that Alliance & Leicester use our lawyer?
No, not really. The home loan issued to you is subject to its various provisions, one of which will be that lawyers will be on the Alliance & Leicester approved list. in the past, most mortgage companies had large numbers of solicitors on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your solicitors to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Alliance & Leicester
How does conveyancing in Gravesend differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build premises in Gravesend contact us having been asked by the seller to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the property is ready to move into. This is because developers in Gravesend tend to acquire the site, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancing solicitors as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Gravesend or who has acted in the same development.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a flat up to £195,000 and found one round the corner in Gravesend I like with a park and transport links nearby, the downside is that it only has 51 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Gravesend for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?
Should you need a home loan that many years will likely be problematic. Discount the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current proprietor has owned the property for at least twenty four months you could request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor about this.
I need to retain a conveyancing solicitor for sale conveyancing in Gravesend. I happened to chance upon a web site which seems to have the perfect offering If it is possible to get all the legals completed via email that would be preferable. Should I be wary? What are the potential pitfalls?
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?
Partway through the sale of a leasehold flat in Gravesend. Conveyancing is fine but we are being charged a fortune by the landlord. So far we have issued a cheque for £268 for a leasehold management information and then a further £134.40 for supplemental questions raised by the purchaser's conveyancer.
Neither you or your lawyer will have any impact over the level of the bill for this information however the typical fee for the information for Gravesend leasehold premises is £380. When it comes to Gravesend conveyancing sales it is usual for the seller to pay for these charges. The freeholder or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at high prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Regretfully there is no law that requires capped charges for administrative tasks. Nor is there any prescriptive time frame by which they are duty bound to supply the information.