My fiance and I are looking to buy a home in Hebburn and are in fact using a Hebburn conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Halifax have this morning contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Hebburn lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?
If you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is normal 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 solicitor 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 are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Hebburn solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
Me and my partner are about to complete buying a house in Hebburn but as a consequence of wreckage from the recent storms I have was able negotiate reparation from the owner of six thousand pounds taking the form of a deduction in the price. I had intended this to be dealt with as part of amending the contract yet Principality will not agree to this. Should they have been notified?
The lawyer being on the Principality conveyancing panel is duty bound to inform Principality of any amendments to the purchase price. If you were to refuse your conveyancing practitioner to notify the price change to Principality then they would have to discontinue acting for you. In addition, Principality and you would have to appoint a new lawyer for your conveyancing in Hebburn.
I am the registered owner of a freehold premises in Hebburn but nevertheless pay rent, why is this and what is this?
It’s unusual for properties in Hebburn and has limited impact for conveyancing in Hebburn but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.
Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges have existed for hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the creation of new rentcharges post 1977.
Old rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a lump sum payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence post 2037 will be extinguished.
I have been advised by my lawyer that defective lease insurance is required on my purchase. What is the level of cover for Hebburn conveyancing?
The right level of defective lease indemnity insurance depends on your lender. It would differ for example between Birmingham Midshires and Bank of Scotland. Conveyancing solicitors as opposed to members of the public take out such insurances.
When it comes to mortgage companies such as Virgin Money, do Hebburn lawyers incur an annual charge to be on the conveyancing panel?
We are unaware of any bank fees to register on their panel, although some do levy an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.
We were going to get a DIP from Bank of Ireland this week so we can work out what to offer on a property we like as otherwise we only have online calculators to go by (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do Bank of Ireland recommend any Hebburn solicitors on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel, or is it better to go independently?
You will need to appoint Hebburn solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and Bank of Ireland through the process.
I used Wolstenholmes several years ago for my conveyancing in Hebburn. I now require my file but the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?
You should call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Hebburn of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously hired, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
In my capacity as executor for the will of my aunt I am selling a property in Neath but I am based in Hebburn. My solicitor (based 250 miles from merequires that I sign a stat dec prior to the transaction finalising. Can you recommend a conveyancing lawyer in Hebburn to witness and place their company stamp on the document?
Technically speaking you are unlikely to be required to have the documents witnessed by a conveyancing solicitor. Normally or notary public or qualified solicitor will do regardless of whether they are Hebburn based