My husband and I are looking to acquire a house in Stony Stratford and have appointed a Stony Stratford conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our solicitor has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Nottingham Building Society have this morning contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Stony Stratford conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Is this a problem?
Where you are buying a property requiring 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 Quality 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 solicitors to act. 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 Stony Stratford lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
My husband and I are nearing an exchange on a house in Stony Stratford and my mum and dad have sent the ten percent deposit to my conveyancing practitioner. I am now informed that as the deposit has not arrived from me my conveyancer needs to disclose this to my lender. Apparently, in also acting for the bank he must advise them that the balance of the purchase price is not just from me. I advised the mortgage company about my parents' contribution when I applied for the mortgage, so is it really necessary for this now to hold matters up?
The conveyancing practitioner is legally required to clarify with the bank to ensure that they are aware that the balance of the purchase price is not from your own funds. The solicitor can only reveal this to your mortgage company if you agree, failing which, your lawyer must cease to continue acting.
I'm the only beneficiary of my late mum's will and I have everything in my name now, including the house in Stony Stratford. Conveyancing formalities meant that the Land Registry date was in September. I plan to dispose of the property. I do know about the CML six month 'rule', which means that my proprietorship may be treated the same way as though I had purchased the property in September. Do I have to wait 6 months to sell?
The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook requires solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you could be affected by that. Some banks would take a sensible view as this requirement chiefly exists to identify the purchase and immediately sell or the wholesaling and assigning of property.
Is there a list of Coventry BS panel conveyancers in Stony Stratford on the Building Society Association’s Website?
No. There is no such tool on the CML or Building Society Association websites. A small selection of mortgage companies make their panel listings open the public online. Where you are seeking to appoint a Stony Stratford conveyancing practitioner on the Coventry BS please make the most of our tool.
It is unclear whether my bank requires a lease extension. I have called into my local Stony Stratford bank branch on a couple of occasions and was told they are content with the situation and they will lend. My Stony Stratford conveyancing solicitor - who is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel- called to say that they refuse to lend in accordance with their UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook minimum lease term requirements. I have no idea who is right.
Provided that the lawyer is on the mortgage company approved list, they must comply with the CML Handbook specifications for the bank. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the lender will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the lender to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
Should commercial conveyancing searches reveal impending roadworks that may affect a commercial premises in Stony Stratford?
Many commercial conveyancing solicitors in Stony Stratford will order a SiteSolutions Highways report as it reduces the time that conveyancers spend in investigating accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Stony Stratford. The report sets out definitive information on the adoption status of roads, footpaths and verges, as well as the implication of traffic schemes and the rights of way surrounding a commercial development sites in Stony Stratford.
For every commercial conveyancing transaction in Stony Stratford it is crucial to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. The absence of identifying developments where adoption procedures have not been addressed adequately can cause delays to Stony Stratford commercial conveyancing transactions as well as pose a risk to future intentions for the site. These searches are not conducted for residential conveyancing in Stony Stratford.
Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to our house are lost. The solicitors who dealt with the conveyancing in Stony Stratford 10 years ago no longer exist. What are my next steps?
Assuming the title is registered the details of your ownership will be recorded by the Land Registry under a Title Number. It is possible to perform a search at the Land Registry, locate your house and secure current copies of the Registered Entries for a small fee. Where the property is Leasehold then the Land Registry will in most cases retain a certified duplicate of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be ordered for £20 inclusive of VAT.
I decided to have a survey carried out on a house in Stony Stratford prior to instructing lawyers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold element to the property. Our surveyor has said that some banks may refuse to give a mortgage on a flying freehold property.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Lloyds has different instructions for example to Birmingham Midshires. Should you wish to call us we can check with the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Stony Stratford. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Stony Stratford especially if they regularly deal with such properties in Stony Stratford.