My husband and I are planning to buy a house in Twyford and have instructed a Twyford conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Santander have this morning contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Twyford conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent 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 bank 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 Twyford solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
My property lawyer in Twyford is not listed on the HSBC Bank Approved Panel. Is it possible for me to use my family solicitor even though they are excluded from the HSBC Bank approved list?
The limited options available to you here include:
- Carry on with your preferred Twyford solicitors but HSBC Bank will need to retain a solicitor on their panel. This will inevitably rack up the overall conveyancing fees as well as result in delays.
- Find a new solicitor to to deal with the conveyancing, obviously checking they are Persuade your lawyer to do everything within their powers to join the HSBC Bank conveyancing panel
Just had an offer accepted on a new build apartment in Twyford. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build conveyancing.
Set out below are examples of a few leasehold new build enquiries that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Twyford
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The Lease must contain a provision on behalf of the Vendor to pay the service charges in respect of unoccupied units in order to ensure that all services can be provided. If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. Please confirm the Lease plans are architect prepared. Will the freehold then be transferred for a nominal consideration (not exceeding £100) to the Management Company? There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants.
Due to the encouragement of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Twyford before retaining lawyers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. The surveyor advised that some lenders tend refuse to give a mortgage on a flying freehold house.
It varies from the lender to lender. HSBC has different instructions for example to Nationwide. If you e-mail us we can check via the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Twyford. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Twyford. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.
If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Twyford - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title. For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.
Leasehold Conveyancing in Twyford - A selection of Queries before buying
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It would be sensible to discover as much as possible regarding the managing agents as they will impact your use and enjoyment of the property. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you are frequently at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to daily matters such as the cleanliness of the common parts. You should not be shy to ask other people what they think of them. Finally, investigate as to the dates that the maintenance charges are due to the managing agents and specifically how they are spending the funds. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments? How is the lease structured?
Do I cancel the direct debit for my mortgage with Kent Reliance as soon as a completion date for my home sale in Twyford has been agreed?
You are best advised to maintain meeting any mortgage payments to Kent Reliance pending the mortgage being redeemed on completion as part of your Twyford conveyancing.