I am selling my apartment in Ham. Will my property lawyer need to be on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel in order to deal with redeeming my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. It might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their requirements fairly frequently at the moment.
I am close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our property in Ham and according to the buyers it appears that there is a possibility that the property was constructed land that was not decontaminated. Any local conveyancer would know this is not the case. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers are using a web based conveyancing outfit as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Ham. We have lived in Ham for many years we know that this is a non issue. Is it a good idea to get in touch with our local Authority to get clarification that the buyers are looking for.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing solicitor currently acting for you. Are they able to advise? You need to enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same illness)
2 months have elapsed since my purchase conveyancing in Ham concluded. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £150,000 when infact I paid £170,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the residence from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
How does conveyancing in Ham differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build property in Ham contact us having been asked by the housebuilder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is constructed. This is because developers in Ham 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 accustomed to new build conveyancing in Ham or who has acted in the same development.
My step-father has recommend that I appoint his conveyancing solicitors in Ham. Should I use them?
There are no two ways about it it’s preferable to select a conveyancing practitioner is to have feedback from friends or family who have used the solicitor that you are contemplating using.
My step-son is just in the process of moving home, the home loan was agreed last week in principle. After the offer was accepted on apartment we called the bank to progress the mortgage application. We were very surprised to learn that mortgage companies do not accept all conveyancer, they need to be on their approved list, is this right?
Banks ordinarily restrict either the type or the number of conveyancing solicitors on their panel. Typical examples of such restriction(s) being that a firm must have two or more partners. In addition to restricting the type of firm, some have decided to limit the number of firms they use to represent them. You should note that lenders have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any Ham solicitor on their panel. Mortgage fraud was a key driver in the rationalisation of conveyancing panels a few years ago and whilst there are differing views about the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Statistics from the Land Registry reveal that thousands of law firms only carry out one or two conveyances a year. Those supporting conveyancing panel cuts ask why law firms should have the right to be on a Lender panel when clearly, conveyancing is not their speciality. To put it another way; would you want a conveyancing solicitor to represent you if you were charged with a crime? Presumably not.