It is is a decade since I bought my home in Openshaw. Conveyancing lawyers have recently been retained on the sale but I can't track down my title deeds. Is this a major issue?
Don’t worry too much. First there is a possibility that the deeds will be retained by your mortgage company or they may be archived with the lawyers who acted in your purchase. Secondly in most cases the title will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to prove you are the registered owner by your conveyancing solicitors acquiring current official copies of the land registers. Almost all conveyancing in Openshaw relates to registered property but in the unlikely event that your home is unregistered it is more tricky but is not insurmountable.
My wife and I are buying a house in Openshaw. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a lawyer? At some point we will need to deposit our life savings into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our money?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
My fiancee and I are in the throws of looking at flats in Openshaw and I am now considering a potential offer. Is it best to have my lawyer on ‘stand by’? I will be getting a home loan with Nottingham.
You should start requesting conveyancing quotes from solicitors ASAP. After you have chosen your lawyer and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and forward their details on to the selling agent. As you are obtaining a mortgage with Nottingham, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the Nottingham conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.
I recently had an offer agreed on an apartment in Openshaw. My financial adviser recommended their conveyancers. I paid an upfront payment of £150. Shortly after, the property lawyer contacted me to say that they were not on the RBS conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the RBS panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.
My relative recommended that if I am buying in Openshaw I should ask my conveyancer to perform a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
A search of this type is occasionally quoted for as part of the standard Openshaw conveyancing searches. It is a large report of about 40 pages, listing and setting out important information about Openshaw around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime statistics, Local Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information about Openshaw.
How does conveyancing in Openshaw differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in Openshaw approach us having been asked by the developer to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the residence is constructed. This is because builders in Openshaw usually acquire the site, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct property lawyers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Openshaw or who has acted in the same development.
I'm refinancing my primary property to a BTL loan with Barnsley Building Society and I will use the rest of the raised equity towards a second house. The location we are talking about is Openshaw. Will your lawyers be able to act for the two lenders and tie in the transactions?
Do use our comparison tool on this page to ensure that the lawyers are on the relevant lender panels. Assuming that they are your conveyancer will be able to tie up the two deals but you should have a chat with you lawyer and make clear your desired outcome and requirements.
What do I do if I am unhappy with the conveyancer who conducted my conveyancing in Openshaw?
We live in an imperfect world, and unfortunately occasionally things do go wrong. That being said there is recourse where you were not happy with your conveyancing in Openshaw. This varies from trying to resolve matters directly with them, through to reporting a conveyancer to their governing body. If things still aren’t resolved you may consider enlisting the help of the Legal Ombudsman.