I am purchasing a right to buy a flat in Torfaen. Can I do my own conveyancing?
Leaving aside the complexities and merits of DIY conveyancing in Torfaen you will have to appoint a solicitor on your mortgage company's conveyancing panel to look after their interests. Most people therefore find it easier to let the solicitor act for them and the lender. Furthermore there is minimal cost savings to be made in you doing conveyancing for yourself and another lawyer conducting the conveyancing for the lender. Please feel free to use the search tool to find a lawyer on your lender panel in Torfaen.
I'm in the throws of looking at houses in Torfaen and I am about to put in an offer. Should I already have a solicitor appointed at this point? I intend to finance via a home loan with Kent Reliance.
You should start requesting conveyancing estimates from solicitors ASAP. After you have chosen your lawyer and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their contact information on to the estate agent. Given that you are obtaining a mortgage with Kent Reliance, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.
I currently have a mortgage with Virgin Money for my property in Torfaen. Conveyancing has been completed some time ago. Should I wish to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Virgin Money?
Your original mortgage agreement with Virgin Money will provide that you need their approval prior to renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of Virgin Money’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Virgin Money directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Virgin Money conveyancing panel lawyer.
I recently had an offer agreed on a house in Torfaen. My financial adviser suggested a conveyancing practitioner. I paid an advanced payment of £225. Not long after, the conveyancing practitioner called me sheepishly admitting that they were not on the Lloyds 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 Lloyds 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.
four months have gone by since my purchase conveyancing in Torfaen took place. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £175,000 when infact I paid £215,000. 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 property 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 or newly converted property in Torfaen come to us having been asked by the builder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is completed. This is because new home sellers in Torfaen usually buy 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 conveyancing solicitors 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 used to new build conveyancing in Torfaen or who has acted in the same development.
I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I put an offer in two weeks back in what should have been a simple, no chain conveyancing. Torfaen is where the house is located. Can you offer any advice?
Flying freeholds in Torfaen are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Torfaen you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds diligently. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Torfaen may determine 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.
My step-father has recommend that I instruct his conveyancing solicitors in Torfaen. Do I follow his guidance?
No doubt it’s preferable to select a conveyancing lawyer is to seek recommendations from friends or family who have actually experience in using the firm you're contemplating using.