Me and my fiance are purchasing a 3 bedroom apartment in Harefield with a mortgage. We like our Harefield conveyancer, however the lender advise she’s not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the lender panel solicitors or keep our Harefield conveyancer as well as pay for one of their panel firms to represent them. We consider that this is unjust; is there anything we can do?
Unfortunately,no. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms 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. A further alternative is for your Harefield conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
I am being advised by my conveyancer that lack of planning permission insurance is needed on my purchase. What is the level of cover for Harefield conveyancing?
The appropriate level of lack of planning permission indemnity insurance depends on your lender. It would differ for example between Lloyds TSB Bank and Leeds Building Society. Conveyancing lawyers as opposed to members of the public take out such insurances.
The mortgage over my property is with HSBC for my property in Harefield. Conveyancing has been completed 12 months ago. In the event that I decide to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform HSBC?
HSBC must be informed of your intention in advance of letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of HSBC’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 HSBC directly. You need not do this via a HSBC conveyancing panel lawyer.
After shopping around on the internet I have found a Harefield property lawyer having checked that they are on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
Virgin Money will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Virgin Money will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Harefield surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
My wife and I are selling our house in Harefield and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a possibility that the property was built on contaminated land. A high street Harefield conveyancer would know this is not the case. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers used a factory type conveyancing outfit as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Harefield. Having lived in Harefield for 5 years we know of no issue. Do we contact our local Authority to seek confirmation that the buyers are looking for.
It would appear that you have a conveyancing solicitor currently acting for you. Are they able to advise? You should check with 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)
five months have gone by since my purchase conveyancing in Harefield took place. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £200,000 when infact I paid £215,000. 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 asset 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.
I have been pointed in your direction by a number of property agents in Harefield to find a solicitor on your site. Is there a financial upside for Estate Agents to market your services ahead of another?
We refuse to give any commission for pointing buyers and sellers in our direction. We thought it would be too underhand a fee as home movers will think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I getting any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.
What is the difference between surveying and conveyancing in Harefield?
Conveyancing - in Harefield or elsewhere - is the process of legally transferring legal title of property from one person to another. It involves the investigation of the title. Whether buying or selling, you should be aware of anything affecting the property such as proposals by government departments, illegal buildings, or outstanding rates. The conveyancer should conduct the appropriate searches and inquiries on the property. Surveying relates to the structure of a property itself. A surveyor will look at a house, flat and any outbuildings you are purchasing and will help you find out about the condition of the building and, if there are problems, give you leverage for reducing the price down or asking the seller to fix the defects prior to you move in.