I am progressing with the sale of my house in Pendlebury and the EA has just text me to warn that the purchasers are appointing a new law firm. The excuse is that the bank will only work with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. Why would a leading lender only engage with certain solicitors rather the firm that they want to select to handle their conveyancing in Pendlebury ?
Lenders have always had an approved set of law firms that can represent them, but in the past few years big names such as Nationwide, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for over 25 years.
Lending institutions point to the increase in fraud as the reason for the cull – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. Banks tend not to reveal how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your buyers are unlikely to have any impact on this.
We are due to complete on the purchase of a house in Pendlebury but as a consequence of damage from the recent storms I have was able negotiate compensation from the seller in the sum of £2k taking the form of a deduction in the price. This was going to be addressed as part of the conveyancing process however Santander are not allowing this. Should they have been notified?
Your conveyancer being on the Santander conveyancing panel is duty bound to inform Santander of any amendments to the purchase price. If you were to refuse your solicitor to report the price change to Santander then they would have to discontinue acting for you. In addition, Santander and you would have to appoint a new conveyancing practitioner for your conveyancing in Pendlebury.
We had chosen conveyancing lawyers with offices in Pendlebury on the Nationwide solicitor panel. They have just billed me an additional charge for the legal aspects of the Nationwide mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by Nationwide?
As unfair as it may appear, as long as it’s in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your solicitor is entitled to levy a fee for this. This fee is not set by Nationwide but by your Pendlebury solicitor. Some firms on the Nationwide panel will levy an ‘acting for lender’ fee but many firms incorporate it on their overall fee.
I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Leeds Building Society. I assume I don't need a Pendlebury property lawyer on the Leeds Building Society panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.
If you have finished paying off your Leeds Building Society mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Leeds Building Society mortgage from the register. Leeds Building Society, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Leeds Building Society has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Leeds Building Society has instructed the Land Registry to do so
Coventry BS have agreed my mortgage in principle, my bid on a flat in Pendlebury has been agreed to, now what?
Your property agent will need to know who your solicitors are (ensure that the solicitors are on the lender’s panel). Call up Coventry BS or your broker and finalise any outstanding paperwork. Coventry BS will instruct a valuer who will get in contact with the selling agent or owners to book a slot for the valuation to take place. Once conducted (assuming no problems) it takes on average a fortnight for the mortgage offer to be issued. Coventry BS will issue the offer to you and your solicitors. The transaction will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing in Pendlebury.
I am looking into buying my first house which is in Pendlebury and I am already nervous. I couldn't find anything specific about Pendlebury. Conveyancing will be needed in due course but do you know about the Pendlebury area? or perhaps some other tips you can share?
Rather than looking online forget looking online you should go and have a look at Pendlebury. In the meantime here are some basic statistics that we found
What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Pendlebury conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?
When appointing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Pendlebury conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with two or three firms including non Pendlebury conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. The following questions might be useful:
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If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?
I purchased a 1st floor flat in Pendlebury, conveyancing having been completed June 2000. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Equivalent flats in Pendlebury with a long lease are worth £202,000. The ground rent is £60 invoiced every year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2082
You have 56 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £29,500 and £34,000 plus legals.
The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.
I have been Googling for Pendlebury conveyancing quotes online. Can I be sure that all the Pendlebury firms that are listed on your website are on the mortgage company conveyancing panel?
The solicitor and licensed conveyancing practices on our directory have advised us that they are on the lender panel and agreed to advise us to take down their listing in the event of removal off of the mortgage company panel. To date we have not been informed by either a bank or a member of the public that the data about a specific Pendlebury conveyancing solicitor being on the bank conveyancing panel is incorrect.