I am five weeks into the sale of my home in Lyddington and the estate agent has just telephoned to warn that the buyers are appointing a new law firm. I am told that this is due to the fact that the lender will only engage with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a leading lender only engage with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Lyddington ?
Banks have always had an approved set of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the past few years big names such as Yorkshire Building Society, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for more than 15 years.
Banks point to the increase in fraud as the reason for the cull – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to keep an eye on. Banks tend not to disclose how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your purchasers are not going to have any impact on this.
My wife and I are buying a newly constructed duplex in Lyddington and my lawyer is advising me that she is duty bound to the lender to reveal incentives from the developer. I am nearing the developer’s deadline to exchange contracts and my preference is not to delay deal. Is my lawyer right?
You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your lawyer. A precondition to being on a bank panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook provisions. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.
We're in Lyddington, FTBs purchasing with a mortgage (lender is Coventry BS , and our lawyer is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel). How long should the conveyancing process take?
The fact that your lawyer is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel is a help. It would almost certainly delay matters if they were not. However, no lawyer should guarantee a timeframe for your conveyancing, due to third parties outside of your control such as delays caused by lenders,conveyancing search providers or by the other side’s solicitors. The time taken is often determined by the number of parties in a chain.
I'm the sole beneficiary of my late grandmother’s estate and I have everything in my name now, including the house in Lyddington. The Lyddington property was put into my name in September. I now wish to sell up. I do know about the Mortgage Lenders 6 month 'rule', meaning my proprietorship may be considered the same way as though I had purchased the house in September. Do I have to wait half a year to sell?
The CML handbook instructs conveyancers 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 practical a view banks take of it, depend on the mortgage company as this requirement principally exists to pick up on subsales or the flipping of property.
Are all Lyddington Conveyancing Quality Solicitors on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing list of approved practices?
A selection of banks and building societies now make use of the accreditation scheme as the kick off point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS membership however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitors wishing to remain on their approved list of firms.
We had instructed conveyancing lawyers with offices in Lyddington on the RBS solicitor approved list. They have just billed me a further amount for handling the RBS mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by RBS?
Provided it is contained in their Terms of Engagement or estimate then yes your solicitor is entitled to charge a fee for this. The fee is not dictated by RBS but by your Lyddington property lawyer. Numerous firms on the RBS panel will charge ’dealing with mortgage’ fee and others do not.
I have been advised by a number of estate agents in Lyddington to choose a property lawyer on your site. Is there a financial inducement for Estate Agents to recommend your site ahead of a competitor’s?
We don’t give any financial incentive for directing people in our direction. We found it would be just too difficult a fee because members of the public would think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I getting any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.
Having checked my lease I have discovered that there are only Fifty years remaining on my lease in Lyddington. I now wish to get lease extension but my landlord is can not be found. What should I do?
If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the magistrate. However, you will be required to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the lessor. On the whole an enquiry agent should be helpful to carry out a search and to produce a report which can be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to devolving into the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Lyddington.
I am the registered owner of a basement flat in Lyddington, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2006. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent flats in Lyddington with an extended lease are worth £201,000. The ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease finishes on 21st October 2089
With only 64 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £14,300 and £16,400 plus professional fees.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.