Our son is in the process of securing a new build apartment in London with a home loan from Kent Reliance. His solicitor has said that there is a delay in completing the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. This document is news to me - what is it and who needs sight of it?
The form is intended to provide information to the main parties engaged in the purchase. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when requested. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
Do all mortgage companies provide you with an approved list of London conveyancing solicitors? How do you know who is on the Co-operative conveyancing panel?
London conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Co-operative conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Co-operative directly.
We intend to purchase a newly converted apartment in London with a mortgage from Norwich and Peterborough Building Society.We have a London conveyancing solicitor but Norwich and Peterborough Building Society advised that she’s not listed on their "panel". We have to appoint a Norwich and Peterborough Building Society panel firm or retain our high street solicitor and pay for a Norwich and Peterborough Building Society panel lawyer to act for them. This seems very unfair; is there anything we can do?
No, not really. The mortgage issued to you contains various provisions, a common one being that conveyancers will be on the Norwich and Peterborough Building Society conveyancing panel. Until recently, most mortgage companies had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your solicitors to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Norwich and Peterborough Building Society
I can not fathom if my bank obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have called my London building society branch on various occasions and was advised it wasn't an issue and they would lend. My London conveyancing solicitor - who is on the bank conveyancing panel- called and was told they refuse to lend in accordance with their specific requirements. Who do I believe?
As long as the lawyer is on the bank panel, they must follow the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook specifications for the lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the mortgage company will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the mortgage company to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
After shopping around on the internet I have found a London lawyer having checked that they are on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
Coventry BS will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Coventry BS 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 London 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.
I have finally had an offer on an apartment in London accepted, the owners do however have a tied purchase. The owners have put an offer on a property, however it’s not yet agreed to, and are looking at other apartments booked. I have selected a bricks and mortar conveyancing solicitor in London. What do I do now? At what stage do I apply for the mortgage with Coventry BS?
It is understandable to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur costs too early (home loan application is in the region of one thousand pounds, then survey, London conveyancing search fees, etc). The first thing to do is check that your conveyancing practitioner is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel. As to the next steps this very much depends on the uniqueness of your case, attraction to this property and on the state of the market. In a hot market the majority of home buyers would apply for a home loan with Coventry BS and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they pay their conveyancer to move forward with the conveyancing in London.
I'm purchasing my first flat in London with a mortgage from Skipton Building Society. The developers would not budge the price so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The property agent told me not inform my lawyer about this deal as it would jeopardize my loan with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
I need to switch lawyers as my London lawyer is not on the mortgage company's panel of conveyancing solicitors. Is it practical to instruct different lawyers?
If you haven't yet appointed a solicitor to commence the conveyancing and at this stage simply received an estimate as to costs, you're perfectly free to choose a different solicitor to carry out your work for you. The best way is to get recommendations from friends or family who have actually used the solicitor or conveyancer in London that you're considering.