I plan on buying a flat in Greater Manchester. My lawyer is not listed on the bank solicitor panel. Is it possible for me to retain my Greater Manchester conveyancing solicitor even though they are excluded from the mortgage company panel?
Your options include
- Proceed with your existing Greater Manchester conveyancer but your bank will undoubtedly use a conveyancer on their approved panel. The net result is additional charges together with probable interruption.
- Choose a new conveyancing practitioner to conduct the conveyancing, obviously checking they are on the lender conveyancing panel.
- Convince your solicitor to attempt to join the bank panel
My husband and I intend to remortgage our apartment in Greater Manchester with TSB. We have a son 19 who lives with us. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose any adults other than ourselves who reside at the property. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the apartment is repossessed. I have a couple of questions (1) Is this form unique to the TSB conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we bought 5 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?
First, rest assured that your TSB conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to TSB. This is solely used to protect TSB if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of TSB had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
The Greater Manchester conveyancing firm that I recently instructed on my house acquisition in Greater Manchester have without warning shut down. I chose them because I had to have a firm on the Co-operative conveyancing panel and my previous Greater Manchester lawyer was not. I wrote them a cheque for two hundred pounds in advance. What do I do now?
Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then let them know immediately so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Most sellers would be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Co-operative conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new solicitors may be able to help.
We are purchasing a 3 bedroom semi in Greater Manchester. Our aim is to carry out a loft conversion at the house.Will the conveyancing process include checks to determine if these alterations are prohibited?
Your solicitor should check the registered title as conveyancing in Greater Manchester will sometimes identify restrictions in the title deeds which prohibit certain alterations or require the permission of another owner. Some extensions need local authority planning consent and approval in compliance with building regulations. Certain locations are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which often prevent or affect extensions. It would be sensible to check these issues with a surveyor prior to committing yourself to a purchase.
The mortgage over my property is with Kent Reliance for my property in Greater Manchester. Conveyancing has been completed 12 months ago. Should I wish to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Kent Reliance?
Your original mortgage agreement with Kent Reliance will provide that you need their approval before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Kent Reliance’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will permit you to let out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Kent Reliance directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Kent Reliance conveyancing panel firm.
I can not work out if my mortgage offer requires a lease extension. I have telephoned my Greater Manchester building society branch on numerous occasions and was told they are content with the situation and they will lend. My Greater Manchester conveyancing solicitor - who is on the bank conveyancing panel- called to say that they will not lend in accordance with their specific requirements. I simply don't know who is right.
As long as the conveyancing practitioner is on the mortgage company panel, they must comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook specifications for the bank. 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.
I have been told that property searches are the main reason for delay in Greater Manchester house deals. Is that correct?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) has noted the findings of research by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not figure within the top 10 causes of hindrances during the legal transfer of property. Local searches are not likely to be the root cause of delay in conveyancing in Greater Manchester.
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At this site secure a fixed fee costs illustration from a Solicitor or Licensed Conveyancer that has a full understanding of the nuances for your conveyancing in Greater Manchester. Unlike many estate agents and many comparison sites we are not in the business of charging firms a commission if you choose them for your conveyancing in Greater Manchester