My husband and I are planning to acquire a flat in Paignton and are in fact using a Paignton conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our property lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Godiva Mortgages Ltd have this evening contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Paignton solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?
If you are buying a property needing a mortgage it is conventional for the purchasers' solicitors 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 lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Paignton lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
I am under pressure from the seller of a property in Paignton to exchange within four weeks. What can I do to expedite the conveyancing process?
In a situation where you are under pressure for your conveyancing it is advisable to make sure that your conveyancer is familiar with the location as they will benefit local relationships and know-how. It is possible that they may have transacted previousproperties in the same neighbourhood. Therefore consider using a Paignton conveyancing lawyer. In addition, double check that the lawyer is on the on the approved list for your mortgage company. It is estimated that just under twenty per cent of Paignton conveyancing transactions are held up or derailed after finding out that a buyer’s lawyer was not on their banks list of approved solicitors. This can often result in the legal transfer of property being delayed by almost three weeks. It is believed that this issue impacts in the region of 100,000 home sales every year. Most Paignton conveyancing firms can not represent certain lenders so do check as early as possible.
How up to date is your search tool for Paignton conveyancing solicitors on the Skipton conveyancing panel? Do Skipton send you an updated list?
Paignton conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Skipton conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Skipton directly.
I am helping my mother sell her flat in Paignton. Does the conveyancer commission the energy performance certificate or it is for the seller to coordinate?
Following the demise of Home Packs, EPC’s was left as a mandatory element of moving house. An EPC should be commissioned before the property is marketed. It is not something that law firms normally organise. If you are using a Paignton conveyancing practitioner they might help arrange EPC’s given their contacts with long established local assessors
We are buying a detached bungalow in Paignton. The intention is to carry out a loft conversion at the property.Will legal investigations on the property include enquiries to ascertain if these works were previously refused?
Your solicitor should review the deeds as conveyancing in Paignton can on occasion identify restrictions in the title deeds which restrict certain works or require the permission of a 3rd party. Some additions call for local authority planning permissions and approval in compliance with building regulations. Certain areas are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which often prevent or impact extensions. It would be wise to check these things with a surveyor ahead of any purchase.
The formalities of my remortgage has taken place for my property in Paignton. Conveyancing was satisfactory but I would like to complain about the lender. Who do I contact should I wish to lodge a complaint?
All banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Team at head office. We understand that complaints to a lender are resolved very quickly. If you feel the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR who will take matters further.
A colleague suggested that where I am buying in Paignton I should carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
This is a search is sometimes included in the estimate for your Paignton conveyancing searches. It is a large report of about 40 pages, listing and setting out important information about Paignton 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 House Prices, Crime statistics, Paignton Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information concerning Paignton.
How does conveyancing in Paignton differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in Paignton contact us having been asked by the seller to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the property is finished. This is because developers in Paignton tend to purchase the land, 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 conveyancing solicitors 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 accustomed to new build conveyancing in Paignton or who has acted in the same development.