Will lawyers ask for money on account for my conveyancing in Hayes?
If you are buying a property in Hayes your solicitor will request that you put them with funds to cover the the cost of the conveyancing searches. This will be the total of the cost of the Local Authority Search. If any deposit is payable against the sale price then this will be required shortly ahead of contracts are exchanged. Any further balance that is needed will be payable a couple of days ahead of the completion date.
I am thinking of refinancing my house in Hayes, does my lawyer have to be on the TSB Conveyancing panel?
In theory, you could use a solicitor that is not on the TSB conveyancing panel, but TSB would require one of their panel solicitors to be instructed to act in their interests, and you'd have to pay for this - so most people instruct a panel solicitor. It's also easier, as otherwise you'd have to deal with two solicitors for the same transaction.
I am currently in the process of buying my council flat in Hayes. I have a mortgage offer with RBS. Conveyancing is new to me. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should have one. Any advice?
It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with RBS, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the RBS conveyancing panel.
Completion of my remortgage has taken place for my property in Hayes. Conveyancing was satisfactory but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. How does one go about formally complaining?
All banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first port of call should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Department at head office. We understand that complaints to a lender are sorted out very quickly. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR who will take matters further.
After shopping around on the internet I have found a Hayes lawyer having checked that they are on the TSB conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
TSB will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually TSB 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 Hayes 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.
A colleague advised me that where I am buying in Hayes I should carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?
A search of this type is sometimes quoted for as part of the standard Hayes conveyancing searches. It is not a small report of about 40 pages, listing and setting out significant information about Hayes around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Hayes Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime details, Local Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data about Hayes.
Me and my brother purchased a 4 bedroom Edwardian property in Hayes. Conveyancing practitioner acted for me and Santander. I did a free Land Registry search last week and there are two entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold under the exact same property. Is it worth asking Santander to clarify?
You should review the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Hayes and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they remortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with purchasers. You can also enquire as to the situation with the conveyancing solicitor who completed the work.
My cousin is buying a garden flat in Hayes. He was given a quote by the conveyancing practitioner recommended by the estate agents and it came to £1385 . It was 9 years ago I sold and bought a property and it cost was £495. Have charges really gone up that much?
You should call two or three local Hayes conveyancing solicitors seeking prices. You should base your decision not just on cost, but on promptness and on how comprehensive the response is.