My wife and I are planning to acquire a house in Shadwell and are in fact using a Shadwell conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our solicitor has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Santander have this evening contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Shadwell lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is conventional 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 property lawyer 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 lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Shadwell lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
Our conveyancer has uncovered a defect with the lease for the apartment we are buying in Shadwell. The other side have suggested defective title insurance as a workaround. We are happy with insurance and will pay for it. Our solicitor says that he must check that the lender is willing to move forward with this solution. Are we the client or is the mortgage company ?
The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the potential for a conflict of interest, you and the lender are the client. Your solicitor must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook provisions. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects with the lease so that the bank can be afforded the opportunity to check with their valuer as to the extent that the value of the property is affected. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your solicitor will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.
I am considering applying for a Coventry BS mortgage for purchase of a new build (under development) in Shadwell with 60% loan to value. Is it compulsory to choose a solicitor on the conveyancing panel for Coventry BS ?
In theory, you could use a solicitor that is not on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel, but Coventry BS would require one of their panel solicitors to be instructed to act in their interests, and you'd have to pay for this - so most people instruct a panel solicitor. It's also easier, as otherwise you'd have to deal with two solicitors for the same conveyancing matter.
I am planning to move home in December. Does my conveyancing solicitor update the removal company on the completion day. On a separate note, can you recommend a removal company in Shadwell. Conveyancing firm was organised prior to coming across this site.
On the day of completion you will need to collect the keys from your estate agent however this should only be done after the vendors lawyers inform the agent that the monies to complete are in and the keys can be given over. After that you should inform the removal company that they can start moving you in. As a matter of policy we do not suggest a specific removal organisation but can assist you in locating a residential property solicitor in Shadwell or a legal practice with expertise in conveyancing in Shadwell.
After weeks of negotiation I have agreed a price on an apartment in Shadwell. My mortgage broker suggested a conveyancing practitioner. I paid an upfront payment of £225. A couple of days later, the conveyancer called me to say that they were not on the Barclays 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 Barclays 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.
I am selling my flat. I had a double glazing fitted in December 2008, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My purchaser’s lender, Nottingham are being difficult. The Shadwell solicitor who is on the Nottingham conveyancing panel is saying indemnity insurance will be fine but Nottingham are requiring a building regulation certificate. Why do Nottingham have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that Nottingham have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Nottingham may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
I'm buying my first flat in Shadwell with the aid of help to buy. The developers would not budge the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of additionals instead. The sale representative told me not inform my solicitor about this deal as it may put at risk my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the UK Finance website. UK Finance form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
Due to the advice of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Shadwell prior to appointing conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. The surveyor advised that some banks tend refuse to give a mortgage on such a property.
It varies from the lender to lender. Lloyds has different requirements from Birmingham Midshires. If you contact us we can check via the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Shadwell. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Shadwell especially if they are familiar with such properties in Shadwell.