My husband and I are purchasing a 2 bedroom flat in Waterbeach with a loan from Britannia.We would like to retain our Waterbeach conveyancing solicitor but Britannia advised that his firm is not listed on their approved list of firms. It seems we are left with little choice but to instruct a Britannia panel firm or retain our preferred solicitor and fork out for one of their panel ones to represent them. This seems very unfair; is there anything we can do?
Unfortunately,no. The mortgage offered to you contains various provisions, one of which will be that conveyancers will be on the Britannia solicitor panel. in the past, most mortgage companies had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your solicitors to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Britannia
Have completed on a a semi-detached house in Waterbeach , how long should it take for the Land Registry to deal with the formalities evidencing my ownership? My Waterbeach conveyancing solicitor has been very slow, so I want to be sure that my name is recorded.
As far as conveyancing in Waterbeach is concerned, registration is no quicker or slower than the rest of England and Wales. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timescales can differ according to the party submitting the application, whether there are errors and whether the Land registry must send notices to any 3rd parties. As of today in the region of three quarters of such applications are fully dealt with in less than three weeks but some can be subject to extensive hold-ups. Registration takes place once the purchaser is living at the premises therefore 'speed' is not typically top priority yet where there is a degree of urgency associated with the registration then you or your conveyancer can communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for an expedited registration.
How does conveyancing in Waterbeach differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build residence in Waterbeach approach us having been asked by the developer to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is finished. This is because developers in Waterbeach usually buy the site, 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 property lawyers 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 Waterbeach or who has acted in the same development.
I opted to have a survey completed on a property in Waterbeach prior to instructing solicitors. I have been told that there is a flying freehold aspect to the house. The surveyor has said that some mortgage companies will not grant a loan on such a house.
It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different requirements for example to Birmingham Midshires. If you e-mail us we can check via the relevant bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Waterbeach. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Waterbeach to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.
How difficult is it to change conveyancer as I have to appoint a firm on the Platform Home Loans Ltd conveyancing list. I instructed a local conveyancing solicitor in Waterbeach five minutes from me but the firm is not accepted by Platform Home Loans Ltd
It would be our pleasure to help you select a conveyancing solicitor in Waterbeach on the Platform Home Loans Ltd panel. Please note that the solicitors that we on the directory do not pay us fee if you instruct them and are under regulation of the Solicitors Regulation Authority who regulate all conveyancing solicitors in Waterbeach. In utilising the find a conveyancing solicitor tool on this page, you can scrutinise fees for conveyancing solicitors in Waterbeach and throughout England and Wales.
We are midway through buying a residence in Waterbeach. Conveyancing lawyer has called to say the title is "Leasehold". Will this likely impact the marketability of the house?
Waterbeach conveyancing does not usually involve leasehold houses. The main consideration here is the unexpired lease term and the ground rent. If there are over a hundred years remaining with a peppercorn rent, it's essentially freehold, so it shouldn't impact the saleability significantly.
At the other extreme, if it's, say, fifty five years it will have a material effect on the saleability, and most likely wouldn't be acceptable to the lender. The length of lease and ground rent will be specified in the lease to be supplied to your lawyer.