My partner and I are planning to buy a property in Havering and have appointed a Havering conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our solicitor has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Norwich and Peterborough Building Society have this morning contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Havering solicitor is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?
Where you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is usual 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 property lawyer should contact your bank 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 don't have to instruct a firm on the bank's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Havering lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
We were just about to exchange contracts for a property in Havering. We have hit a snag. The loan offer with Chelsea Building Society expires on 5/6/2026 but the vendors are insisting on a completion date of 9/6/2026. Can one prolong the loan expiry date?
The best person to deal with your issue is your solicitors who should determine if he or she is better off negotiating with the lender, seller’s solicitors, estate agents or possibly all three taking into account what has gone on in your transaction to date.
How does conveyancing in Havering differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build property in Havering approach us having been asked by the seller to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the property is ready to move into. This is because new home sellers in Havering tend to buy the land, 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 conveyancers 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 Havering or who has acted in the same development.
I have been pointed in your direction by a couple of local property agents in Havering to choose a conveyancer using your seach tool. Is there a financial inducement for Estate Agents to offer your site over and above another?
We don’t make any referral fee for pointing buyers and sellers to this site. We thought it would be too underhand a fee because members of the public would think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I getting any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.
Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £275,000 apartment in Havering in 5 days. The managing agents has quoted £408 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Havering?
For most leasehold sales in Havering conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :
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Answering pre-contract enquiries
Where consent is required before sale in Havering
Copies of the building insurance and schedule
Deeds of covenant upon sale
Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale
I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can a leaseholder make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Havering conveyancing firm to act on my behalf?
Most certainly. We are happy to put you in touch with a Havering conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Havering property is 37 Lodge Court High Street in November 2013. the decision of the LVT was that the premium to be paid for the new lease was £25,559 This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 57.5 years.
My parents are unable to locate their Havering land registry title on the site. They have a vague memory back in the 60’s when they purchased the bungalow there were complications regarding the post code not being identified on some systems.
Nearly all properties in Havering should be revealed. Have you attempted a search to simply the postcode. Normally it should reveal all the residences inside that postcode. Assuming the property is recorded it will be there with a title number. Where they bought back in the 60’s it's conceivable it may be unregistered. The property could still be revealed but with the title number shown 'na'. In this scenario you will need to track down the original title deeds which might be with your parent’s lender.