I have just been advised by my estate agent that my Islington the law firm I have appointed is not on the mortgage company Conveyancing panel. How can I be sure if this is correct?
The first thing you need to do is to call your Islington conveyancer. You lawyer should notify you of the situation. If they are not on the panel they could put your in touch with solicitors on the conveyancing panel for your bank.
The Islington conveyancing solicitors that just started acting on my house acquisition in Islington have without warning closed. I only went with them because I needed a lawyer on the UBS conveyancing panel and my previous Islington lawyer was not. I paid them £170 in advance. What are my options?
Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then inform them immediately so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to the problems encountered. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the UBS conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new solicitors should be in a position to assist.
When it comes to lenders such as Bank of Ireland, do Islington property lawyers face a fee to be on the list of approved solicitors?
We are not aware of any lender fees to register on their list of approved firms, although some do levy an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel submission.
I am purchasing a property in Islington. An unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Solicitors conducting should look into this right? Will my lender TSB be concerned?
As you are obtaining a mortgage with TSB your lawyer must check the conveyancing requirements contained in Section two of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for TSB. The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook sets out minimum conditions for solar panel roof-space leases, and solicitors are required to report to TSB where a lease does not comply with these requirements. The conditions relate to the installation of panels on properties in England and Wales and is not limited to Islington.
After what seems like an age I have had an offer on an apartment in Islington accepted, but there is a chain. The owners have put an offer on on an apartment, but it’s not been accepted yet, and are looking at other apartments booked. I have selected a bricks and mortar conveyancing solicitor in Islington. What do I do now? At what point do I apply for the mortgage with Lloyds?
It is usual to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur expenses prematurely (mortgage application is in the region of £1k, then valuation, Islington conveyancing search charges, etc). First, you should ensure that your property lawyer is on the Lloyds conveyancing panel. Concerning the subsequent phase this very much depends on the circumstances of your case, attraction to this property and on the state of the market. In a hot market many buyers will apply for a home loan with Lloyds and arrange for the valuation and only if it was satisfactory would they request their conveyancer to move forward with the conveyancing in Islington.
Am I better off to instruct a Islington conveyancing practitioner who is local to the property I am buying? I have an old university friend who can execute the conveyancing but they are based over three hundred miles drive away.
The benefit of a high street Islington conveyancing practice is that you can visit the firm to sign paperwork, hand in your identification documents and pester them where appropriate. They will also have local intelligence which is a plus. However it's more important to get someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If other friends have used your friend and the majority were impressed that should surpass using an unfamiliar Islington conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being round the corner.
Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Islington with the intention of saving time on the sale process?
- A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Islington can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ representatives. If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Organising a new share certificate is often a time consuming formality and slows down many a Islington conveyancing transaction. If a reissued share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity. A minority of Islington leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers. You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but you should verify this by asking your solicitors. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the remaining number of years is under 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.
I own a basement flat in Islington. Given that I can not reach agreement with the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the amount payable for a lease extension?
Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Islington conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Islington flat is 5C Stoke Newington Road in April 2010. the Tribunal therefore concludes that the premium to be paid for the extended lease is £700.00 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term as at the valuation date was 80.5 years.
Whilst your website is a good idea there are many lawyers listed near Islington being on the mortgage company conveyancing panel. It would be a lot more helpful if you could recommend a specific firm on the lender approved panel?
We do not recommend specific Islington firms as the right Islington conveyancing solicitor for you depends on where your priorities lie. For example you may require a local firm with Islington knowledge or you might be looking for the low cost conveyancing. Before you appoint your lawyer we advise you to speak to two or three of the the firms listed to gain comfort as to which one is right for you..