My husband and I are looking to acquire a flat in Pimlico and have appointed a Pimlico conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Aldermore have this evening contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Pimlico lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
If you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for 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 Accreditation Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Pimlico solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
The Pimlico conveyancing firm handling our Pimlico conveyancing has uncovered a discrepancy between the assumptions in the home valuation survey and what is revealed within the legal papers for the property. My solicitor informs me that he needs to ensure that the bank is OK with this discrepancy and is still content to lend. Is my solicitor’s stance right?
Your conveyancer must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook provisions which do require that your lawyer disclose any incorrect assumptions in the lender’s valuation report and the legal papers. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for both parties.
Why do I have to pay up front for conveyancing in Pimlico?
If you are buying a property in Pimlico your lawyer will request that you put them with monies to cover the the cost of the conveyancing searches. This will be the total of the cost of the Local Authority Search. When the down payment is payable against the total price then this will be required shortly in advance of contracts are exchanged. Any further balance that is needed should be sent to your lawyer shortly before completion.
We are expecting a mortgage offer soon. The lender mentioned the loan came with free conveyancing. Does this mean I have to appoint their panel solicitor as I would much rather use a specialised conveyancing solicitor in Pimlico?
You should check but the the likelihood is that appoint one of their panel conveyancers if you want the "fee-free" deal. Contact the mortgage company and explore if they allow a monetary alternative. It is not unheard for a lender to give a £250 cashback as a further option in which case you could put that amount towards your preferred conveyancing solicitor in Pimlico.
I have recentlyfound out that Stirling Law have closed. They carried out my conveyancing in Pimlico for a purchase of a freehold house 12 months ago. How can I check that the property is registered correctly in the name of the former proprietor?
The easiest method to check if the premises is in your name, you can carry out a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Pimlico conveyancing specialists.
Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Pimlico conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?
When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Pimlico conveyancing practice) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Pimlico conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions might be of use:
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How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation? What volume of lease extensions have they carried out in Pimlico in the last twenty four months?
I own a first flat in Pimlico. Given that I can not reach agreement with the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the amount payable for a lease extension?
if there is a absentee freeholder or where there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation it is possible to make an application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to arrive at the price payable.
An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Pimlico residence is Flats 12A & 19, Evelyn Mansions Carlisle Place in June 2009. The Tribunal held that the price to be paid for the new lease of Flat 12A is £168,824, For the other flat the price was set at £169,110 This case related to 2 flats. The unexpired term as at the valuation date was 56 years.