Our family solicitor has quoted £1150 for no completion no fee conveyancing in Virginia Water. I’m hoping to sell a newly refurbished house for £225,000. Is this over the top? Is it in excess of the average fee for conveyancing in Virginia Water?
The charges are a bit high. Where you are happy to expend time comparing costs you might get the conveyancing a bit cheaper by as much as £125. That being said, you mightcome to rue opting for an an unknown solicitor. If is important to be sure the firm can also act for your mortgage company. You can use our search tool to find a Virginia Water conveyancing firm on the lender’s approved list of lawyers which can often include conveyancing solicitors in Virginia Water.
Will my conveyancing lawyers need to check that the building insurance for my purchase of a house in Virginia Water. My lender is Nationwide Building Society
Nationwide Building Society have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook. As of 23/6/2025, the requirements read as follows :
I am purchasing a property in Virginia Water. A rare aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Principality have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?
Given that your lender is Principality your lawyer must follow the conveyancing instructions outlined in Section 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Principality. The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook includes minimum provisions for solar panel roof-space leases, and property lawyers are required to report to Principality where a lease fails to satisfy these provisions. The specifications relate to the installation of panels on properties countrywide and is not restricted to Virginia Water.
It is not clear whether my bank obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have called into my local Virginia Water bank branch on a couple of occasions and was told it wasn't an issue and they will lend. My Virginia Water conveyancing solicitor - who is on the bank conveyancing panel- called and was told they refuse to lend in accordance with their specific requirements. I simply don't know who is right.
Provided that the solicitor is on the mortgage company approved list, they must adhere to the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook specifications for the bank. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the mortgage company 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 mortgage company to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
I recently had an offer accepted on an apartment in Virginia Water. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their property lawyer. I paid an upfront payment of £175. Soon after, the property lawyer called me sheepishly admitting that they were not on the Nottingham 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 Nottingham 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.
I am buying a new build house in Virginia Water with a loan from Barclays Direct. The builders refused to move on the price so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The estate agent told me not to tell my lawyer about this deal as it could put at risk my mortgage with the bank. Is this normal?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
Is it possible to switch solicitor as I have to choose one who is on the Coventry Building Society conveyancing panel. I hired a family conveyancing solicitor in Virginia Water five minutes from me but the firm is not accepted by Coventry Building Society
It would be our pleasure to help you select a conveyancing solicitor in Virginia Water on the Coventry Building Society panel. Please note that the conveyancers that we work with do not pay us commission if you instruct them and are regulated by the SRA who regulate all conveyancing solicitors in Virginia Water. Using search facility on this website, you can contrast fees for conveyancing solicitors in Virginia Water and beyond.
My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Virginia Water. Conveyancing and Nationwide Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Virginia Water who previously acted has long since retired. What should I do?
The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Virginia Water conveyancing firm to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.
Leasehold Conveyancing in Virginia Water - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing
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Is anyone aware of any major works in the planning that will increase the maintenance charges? How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments? In the main the cost for major works tend not to be incorporated into the service charges, albeit that there some managing agents in Virginia Water ask leasehold owners to pay into a reserve fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance.