My partner and I are planning to buy a property in Southwold and have appointed a Southwold conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our conveyancer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Leeds Building Society have this afternoon contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Southwold solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is normal 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 Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your bank 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 and you may continue to use your own Southwold solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
I am hoping to complete my purchase in Southwold next Thursday. My property lawyer now wants me to supply her with proof of content and building insurance for the property as as she informs me that she is duty bound to validate that it is in order for the bank. What risks does the lender expect the insurance to cover?
Any lawyer on acting for banks would need to check that the following risks are covered fire; lightning; aircraft; explosion; earthquake; storm; flood; escape of water or oil; riot; malicious damage; theft or attempted theft; falling trees and branches and aerials; subsidence; heave;landslip;collision;accidental damage to underground services;professional fees, demolition and site clearance costs; and public liability to anyone else. There are some other issues such as the level of excess that are set out in a lender’s UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. These obligations are not specific to conveyancing in Southwold.
As a novice what is the most important advice you can impart regarding purchase conveyancing in Southwold?
Not many law firms or advisers will tell you this but conveyancing in Southwold and elsewhere in England and Wales is often a confrontational process. In other words, when it comes to conveyancing there is an abundance of room for friction between you and others involved in the home moving process. E.g., the seller, selling agent and on occasion a bank. Selecting a solicitor for your conveyancing in Southwold an important selection as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the ONLY person in the process whose responsibility is to act in your best interests and to protect you.
Every so often a third party with a vested interest may attempt to convince you that you should follow their advice. For instance, the estate agent may claim to be assisting by claiming that your conveyancer is wrong. Or your mortgage broker may try to convince you to do something that is contrary to your lawyers recommendation. You should always trust your lawyer above all other parties in the home moving process.
Do the Building Society Association intend to launch a online directory to to identify practices on the Darlington Building Society conveyancing panel for example in Southwold?
We are not aware of any plans on the part of the BSA to promote such a search facility.
Just bought a semi-detached house in Southwold , What is the estimated time for the Land Registry to record the transfer to my name? My Southwold conveyancing solicitor works at snail pace, so I want to be sure the registration formalities are addressed.
There is nothing unique about conveyancing in Southwold registration formalities. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timeframes can differ according to who lodges the application, whether it is in order and if the Land registry communicate with any other persons or bodies. Currently approximately three quarters of such applications are fully addressed in less than three weeks but occasionally there can be longer hold-ups. Registration takes place once the purchaser is living at the property thus an expedited registration is not always top priority yet where it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your solicitor should contact the land registry and explain the circumstances.
I need to appoint a conveyancing solicitor for remortgage conveyancing in Southwold. I happened to stumble across a web site which appears to be the ideal answer If there is a chance to get all this stuff completed via web that would be ideal. Should I be concerned? What are the potential pitfalls?
As usual with these online conveyancers you need to read ALL the small print - did you notice the extra charge for dealing with the mortgage?