My husband and I are hoping to acquire a house in Torfaen and have appointed a Torfaen conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our property lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Barclays have this morning contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Torfaen lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?
When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is standard for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for the purchaser's lender. 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 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 don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Torfaen 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.
My partner and I have lately acquired a house in Torfaen. We have noticed several issues with the property which we consider were omitted in the conveyancing searches. Do we have any recourse? What searches should? have been ordered for conveyancing in Torfaen?
It is not clear from the question as to the nature of the problems and if they are unique to conveyancing in Torfaen. Conveyancing searches and investigations initiated as part of the buying process are designed to help avoid problems. As part of the legal transfer of property, a property owner fills in a questionnaire called a SPIF. If the information provided is misleading, you could possibly take legal action against the owner for any losses that you have suffered. The survey should have identified any problems with the structure of the property. Assuming a detailed survey was carried out and the issues were not identified, you may have a claim against the surveyor. However, if you did not have a full survey, you may be responsible for fixing any defects that have now been noted. We would always encourage buyers to take every possible step to ensure they are completely aware of the condition of a property before purchase regardless of whether they are buying in Torfaen.
It has been 4 months following my purchase conveyancing in Torfaen took place. I have checked the Land Registry website which shows that I paid £200,000 when infact I paid £180,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the residence from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
How does conveyancing in Torfaen differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build residence in Torfaen approach us having been asked by the builder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the residence is completed. This is because new home sellers in Torfaen usually acquire the land, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are accustomed to new build conveyancing in Torfaen or who has acted in the same development.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a ground for flat up to £235,500 and identified one near me in Torfaen I like with amenity areas and transport links in the vicinity, the downside is that it only has 49 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Torfaen in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a short lease?
If you require a mortgage the shortness of the lease may be an issue. Discount the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the property for at least 2 years you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this matter.
I am looking for a conveyancing lawyer in Torfaen for my home move. Is there any facility to check a firm’s record with the legal regulator?
You can see documented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) determinations resulting from inquisitions commenced on or after Jan 2008. Go to Check a solicitor's record. To find information about the period before 1 January 2008, or to check a firm's history, call 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 any week day save for Tuesday when lines open at 9.30am. For non-uk callers, dial +44 (0)121 329 6800. The SRA may monitor call for training reasons.