My wife and I are purchasing a newly built duplex in Ossett and my solicitor is telling me that she is duty bound to the lender to reveal incentives from the seller. I am under pressure to sign contracts and I would rather not delay deal. Is my lawyer right?
You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your conveyancer. A precondition to being on a mortgage company panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.
Are the Ossett conveyancing solicitors identified as being on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel, together with their details provided by Yorkshire BS?
Ossett conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Yorkshire BS directly.
Can you clarify what the consequences are if my solicitor is suspended from the Nottingham Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Ossett?
The first thing to point out is that, this is a very rare occurrence. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit for a fee.
The deeds to my property can not be found. The lawyers who did the conveyancing in Ossett 5 years ago are no longer around. What are my options?
As long as the title is registered the details of your proprietorship will be recorded by HMLR with a Title Number. It is possible to carry out a search at the Land Registry, identify your property and order up to date copies of the property title for less than a fiver. If the property is Leasehold then the Land Registry will also normally retain a file copy of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be obtained for a small fee.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I have offered on a fortnight ago in what was supposed to be a simple, no chain conveyancing. Ossett is where the house is located. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in Ossett are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Ossett you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds very carefully. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Ossett may decide that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.
Much to my surprise my conveyancer in Ossett has informed me that he requires ID documents saying that this forms part of his requirements as a conveyancer on the lender Solicitor panel. Is this right?
Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering rules require Ossett conveyancing solicitors and licensed conveyancers to verify the identity of the person or body they are dealing with before they can accept their conveyancing business. The Client Care letter that you need to sign will no doubt confirm this. Your lawyer is right that the lender also require certain documents to be viewed. If a you refuse to provide ID verification documents, your conveyancer would not be able to accept instructions from you. Your lawyer also has obligations to obtain certain documents in accordance with the lender's UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements