My wife and I are buying a 1 bedroom flat in Muxton with a mortgage. We like our Muxton solicitor, however the mortgage company says he's not on their "panel". It seems we have no choice but to select one of the bank panel solicitors or retain our Muxton property lawyer and pay for one of their panel ones to act for them. We regard this is unjust; can we not demand that the mortgage company use our Muxton property lawyer ?
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 lender’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 Muxton conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
We see that you have a post code search directory listing solicitors on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel. Do firms pay you a commission if I retain them for our conveyancing in Muxton?
We are a listing service only for law firms wishing to communicate if they are on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel or other lender panels. We do not charge referral fees to any conveyancer that you subsequently appoint for your conveyancing in Muxton.
The Muxton conveyancing solicitors that I appointed last week on my house acquisition in Muxton have without warning closed. I only went with them because I had to have a lawyer on the Lloyds conveyancing panel and my family Muxton lawyer was not. I paid them funds on account. What are my options?
Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then let them know straight away so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Lloyds conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers may be able to help.
is it true that all Muxton solicitor firms on the UBS conveyancing panel are overseen by the SRA?
As solicitors, in order to be on the UBS approved list of solicitors they would need to be regulated by the SRA. The majority of mortgage companies do list licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such practice would be regulated by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
I can not work out 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 Muxton building society branch on a couple of occasions and was told they are content with the situation and they would lend. My Muxton conveyancing solicitor - who is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel- telephoned to say that they would not lend based on their published requirements. Who do I believe?
Your conveyancer must follow the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook section two specifications for your lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the bank 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 bank to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
My offer on a detached house in Muxton has been agreed to, the vendors do nevertheless have a tied purchase. The vendors have offered on a property, but it’s not been accepted yet, and are looking at other properties booked. I have selected a nearby conveyancing solicitor in Muxton. What should be my next step? When do I get the mortgage application with Clydesdale started?
It is understandable to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur expenses prematurely (home loan application is in the region of £1k, then survey, Muxton conveyancing search costs, etc). First, you must ensure that your conveyancer is on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel. Regarding the subsequent steps this very much dictated by the specifics of your case, motivation for the property and on the state of the market. In a buoyant market the majority of purchasers would apply for the mortgage with Clydesdale and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they pay their property lawyer to move forward with the conveyancing in Muxton.
I am purchasing a new build house in Muxton with a mortgage from Virgin Money. The developers would not move on the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of extras instead. The property agent advised me not reveal to my conveyancer about the deal as it will impact my mortgage with the bank. 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 have been on the look out for a flat up to £195,000 and found one round the corner in Muxton I like with amenity areas and railway links nearby, however it only has 49 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Muxton for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a short lease?
If you require a mortgage that many years will be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the price by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the premises for at least 2 years you could request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor concerning this matter.