Me and my fiance are purchasing a 3 bedroom apartment in Long Buckby with a mortgage. We like our Long Buckby solicitor, however the lender advise he's not on their "panel". It seems we have no option but to instruct one of the bank panel solicitors or retain our Long Buckby lawyer and pay for one of their panel firms to act for them. We feel that this is unjust; is there anything we can do?
No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders 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 Long Buckby conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
I am the single recipient of my late mum's estate with all property in now in my sole name, including the house in Long Buckby. The Long Buckby property was put into my name in May. I plan to dispose of the property. I understand that there is a CML 6 month 'rule', which means that my property ownership could be treated the same way as though I had purchased the house in May. Do I have to wait 6 months to sell?
The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook instructs solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." By the strict wording you may be affected by that. How sensible a view banks take of it, depend on the mortgage company as this requirement primarily exists to pick up on the purchase and immediately sell or the flipping of properties.
Two weeks ago we had a mortgage agreed in principle with Lloyds. Long Buckby conveyancing solicitors are chosen. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from Lloyds?
Some lenders take longer than others. Have Lloyds done the survey? Have you informed Lloyds as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Lloyds conveyancing panel? Sometimes it can take as long as six weeks for a mortgage offer to be issued.
I have paid off my mortgage with Barclays. I assume I don't need a Long Buckby property lawyer on the Barclays panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.
If you have finished paying off your Barclays mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Barclays mortgage from the register. Barclays, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Barclays has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Barclays has instructed the Land Registry to do so
My wife and I own a terraced Georgian property in Long Buckby. Conveyancing solicitor represented me and Lloyds TSB Bank. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw a couple of entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold with the exact same address. Is it worth asking Lloyds TSB Bank to clarify?
You should 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 proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Long Buckby and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they sell they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with lenders. You can also question the situation with your conveyancing practitioner who carried out the work.
I have been recommended by a number of selling agents in Long Buckby to get a quote from a conveyancer using your seach tool. Is there a financial incentive for Estate Agents to offer your site rather than alternative conveyancing organisations?
We don’t give any commission for sending work our way. We found it would be just too difficult a fee as a client could think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not receiving any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.
My uncle has recommend that I use his conveyancers in Long Buckby. Should I use them?
There are no two ways about it it’s preferable to find a conveyancing practitioner is to have recommendations from friends or family who have actually experience in using the solicitor you're are thinking of instructing.
I own a leasehold flat in Long Buckby. Conveyancing and Halifax mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Long Buckby who previously acted has long since retired. Do I pay?
First make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a Long Buckby conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.
Long Buckby Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should ask Prior to buying
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It would be prudent to discover if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For example plenty of leases prohibit pets being permitted in in a block in Long Buckby. If you love the flatin Long Buckby but your dog can’t move with you then you will be presented with a difficult determination. How is the lease structured? Does this lease have in excess of 90 years unexpired?