My wife and I are planning to acquire a home in Kidderminster and have instructed a Kidderminster conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our property lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Clydesdale have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Kidderminster solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?
Where you are buying a property needing a mortgage it is standard for the purchasers' lawyers 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 lender 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 lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Kidderminster lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
My wife and I are approaching an exchange on a property in Kidderminster and my parents have sent the 10% deposit to my solicitor. I am now informed that as the deposit has been sent from someone other than me my solicitor needs to make a notification to my mortgage company. I am advised that, in also acting for the mortgage company he must inform them that the balance of the purchase price is not just from me. I advised the lender concerning my parents' contribution when I applied for the mortgage, so is it really appropriate for him to raise this?
The conveyancing practitioner is legally required to check with the bank to make sure that they know that the balance of the purchase price is not from your own resources. The solicitor can only report this to your lender if you agree, failing which, your lawyer must cease to continue acting.
Do the Building Society Association intend to launch a searchable register to list practices on the Darlington Building Society conveyancing panel for example in Kidderminster?
Lexsure has not been advised of any plans on the part of the BSA to develop such a tool.
What will a local search tell me regarding the house we're purchasing in Kidderminster?
Kidderminster conveyancing often starts with the applying for local authority searches directly from your local Authority or through a personal search company such as Searches UK The local search is essential in every Kidderminster conveyancing purchase; as long as you wish to avoid any unpleasant once you have moved into your property. The search should supply data on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the premises (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 subject areas.
I purchased a renovated Victorian house in Kidderminster. Conveyancing practitioner acted for me and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw two entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold with the matching address. I'd like to know for sure, how can I find out??
You need to read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be 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 Kidderminster and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with mortgage companies. You can also enquire as to the position with your conveyancing lawyer who conducted the purchase.
I opted to have a survey carried out on a property in Kidderminster prior to retaining conveyancers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. My surveyor advised that some lenders tend not grant a loan on a flying freehold property.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Santander has different instructions for example to Birmingham Midshires. If you contact us we can check with the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Kidderminster. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.