I am approaching an exchange on a property in Smithfield and my mum and dad have transferred the exchange deposit to my solicitor. I am now told that as the deposit has been sent from someone other than me my conveyancer needs to disclose this to my mortgage company. Apparently, in also acting for the bank he must inform them that the balance of the purchase price is coming from anyone other than me. I informed the lender regarding my parents' contribution when I applied for the home loan, so is it really necessary for this now to be an issue?
The lawyer is obliged to clarify with lender to make sure that they are aware that the balance of the purchase price is not from your own funds. The solicitor can only disclose this to your bank if you permit them to, failing which, your lawyer must cease to continue acting.
I have a decision in principle. The bank mentioned the mortgage came with free conveyancing. Is the implication that I have to use their panel lawyer as I would much rather appoint a high street conveyancing solicitor in Smithfield?
You should check but the chances are that appoint one of their panel conveyancers where you take up the "fee-free" offer. Speak to the lender to see if they allow a cash alternative. Some lenders have previously offered a £250 cashback as an alternative in which case you could put that amount towards your preferred conveyancing solicitor in Smithfield.
is it true that all Smithfield solicitors on the Barclays conveyancing panel are regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority?
As solicitors, in order to be on the Barclays approved list of solicitors they would need to be governed by the SRA. Many lenders do permit licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such organisation would be regulated by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
I am purchasing a property in Smithfield. One unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Santander have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?
As your lender is Santander your lawyer must check the formal requirements contained in Section 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Santander. The CML Handbook contains minimum conditions for solar panel roof-space leases, and property lawyers are required to report to Santander where a lease fails to satisfy these conditions. The provisions relate to the installation of panels on properties nationwide and is not restricted to Smithfield.
Planning on purchasing a house in Smithfield. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Building Society if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Nationwide conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Smithfield conveyancer is on the Nationwide conveyancing panel.
My relative recommended that where I am purchasing in Smithfield I should ask my conveyancer to perform a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
A search of this type is usually included in the estimate for your Smithfield conveyancing searches. It is a large document of about 40 pages, listing and detailing significant information about Smithfield around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Smithfield Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime details, Smithfield Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data regarding Smithfield.
Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to our property can not be found. The lawyers who handled the conveyancing in Smithfield 5 years ago are no longer around. Will I be able to sell the house?
Assuming the title is registered the details of your proprietorship will be retained by HMLR with a Title Number. It is easy to carry out a search at the Land Registry, find your property and get current copies of the Registered Entries for a small fee. Where the title is Leasehold then the Land Registry will usually hold a certified copy of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be retrieved for a small fee.
I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I have offered on last month in what was supposed to be a straight forward, no chain conveyancing. Smithfield is the location of the property. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in Smithfield are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Smithfield 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 Smithfield 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.