My wife and I are hoping to buy a property in Malpas and have appointed a Malpas conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our conveyancer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Barnsley Building Society have this evening contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Malpas lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is conventional for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the mortgage company. 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 solicitor should contact your bank 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 are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Malpas lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
is it true that all Malpas conveyancing solicitors on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel are overseen by the SRA?
As solicitors, in order to be on the Clydesdale approved list of solicitors they would need to be governed by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. The majority of banks do list licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such organisation would be governed by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
We were going to get a OIP from Yorkshire BS this week so we can work out what to offer on a property we like as otherwise we only have online calculators to go by (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do Yorkshire BS recommend any Malpas solicitors on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel, or is it better to find our own lawyer?
You will need to appoint Malpas solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and Yorkshire BS through the process.
I can not work out if my mortgage offer requires a lease extension. I have called into my local Malpas bank branch on various occasions and was told it does not impact the mortgage offer and they would lend. My Malpas conveyancing solicitor - who is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel- called to say that they refuse to lend in accordance with their published requirements. I simply don't know who is right.
Provided that the lawyer is on the mortgage company panel, she or he must comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook specifications for the bank. 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.
I note that there are debates on Chancel Insurance on online forums. Am I compelled to take this when buying a residence in Malpas? or I am told that there is historic law that means some house owners residing in a parish church boundary may be liable to pay for repairs to the chancel in proximity to the church. Is this applicable for conveyancing in Malpas?
Unless a prior acquisition of the premises completed post 12 October 2013 you can assume that solicitors handling conveyancing in Malpas to continue to suggest a chancel search and or chancel repair liability insurance.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified during conveyancing in Malpas?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Malpas. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
I'm purchasing my first flat in Malpas with a loan from Halifax. The builders would not move on the amount so I negotiated 6k of additionals instead. The sale representative suggested that I not to tell my lawyer about this extras as it would adversely affect my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer 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 have been sourcing a conveyancing lawyer in Malpas for my house move. Can I check a firm’s complaints history with the legal regulator?
Anyone can review presented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) decisions arising from investigations from 2008 onwards. Go to Check a solicitor's record. For records Pre 2008, or to check a firm's record, call 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and 09.30 - 18.00 Tuesday. International callers, dial +44 (0)121 329 6800. The regulator sometimes recorded telephone calls for training requirements.