My husband and I are buying property in Verwood. My lawyer is not on the bank solicitor list. Can I still retain my Verwood conveyancing solicitor even though they are excluded from the bank panel?
Your options include
- Carry on with your preferred Verwood property lawyer but your mortgage company will undoubtedly retain a lawyer on their approved list. The net result is additional charges together with likely frustration.
- Appoint a new conveyancing practitioner to conduct the conveyancing, making sure they are on the lender conveyancing panel.
- Appeal to your solicitor to seek to join the mortgage company panel
Please help - my lawyer advises that flying freehold insurance is required on my purchase. What is the level of cover for Verwood conveyancing?
The appropriate level of flying freehold indemnity insurance should be dictated by who your lender. It would differ for example between Halifax and The Royal Bank of Scotland. Conveyancing lawyers as opposed to members of the public take out such policies.
We previously instructed conveyancing lawyers with offices in Verwood on the Leeds Building Society solicitor approved list. They are now charging me a separate sum for the legal aspects of the Leeds Building Society mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee set by Leeds Building Society?
Provided it is contained in their Terms of Engagement or estimate then yes your solicitor is entitled to charge a fee for this. This charge is not set by Leeds Building Society but by your Verwood conveyancer. Numerous firms on the Leeds Building Society panel will charge ’dealing with mortgage’ fee but some firms incorporate it on their overall fee.
The mortgage over my property is with RBS for my property in Verwood. Conveyancing was finalised 12 months 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 RBS?
You must advise RBS prior to letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of RBS’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will permit you to let 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 RBS directly. You need not do this via a RBS conveyancing panel solicitor.
We are selling our home in Verwood and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a risk of it being built land that was not decontaminated. A high street Verwood conveyancer would know that there is no such problem. It does beg the question why the purchasers used a factory type conveyancing outfit rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Verwood. We have lived in Verwood for three years we know of no issue. Do we contact our local Authority to get clarification need.
It would appear that you have a conveyancing lawyer currently acting for you. Are they able to advise? You need to check with your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same ailment)
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified as part of conveyancing in Verwood?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Verwood. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
I opted to have a survey carried out on a house in Verwood before appointing solicitors. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold overhang to the house. Our surveyor has said that some banks may not give a loan on this type of home.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Bank of Scotland has different instructions for example to Halifax. Should you wish to call us we can check with the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Verwood. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
Should I be suspicious by third parties that I am dealing with are encouraging me to use a factory type conveyancing firm as opposed to a High Street Verwood conveyancing company?
As with many professional services, often input from family and friends can be very helpful. Nevertheless there are many parties with a keen interest in a conveyancing deal; estate agents, mortgage brokers and lenders may recommend solicitors to instruct. Sometimes these solicitors might be known to one of the organisations as experts in their field, but sometimes there might be a financial incentive behind the endorsement. You have the right to choose your preferred conveyancer. However, bear in mind that the majority of lenders specify a panel list of solicitors you must use for the mortgage related work in your conveyancing.