Are the BSA intent on creating a online directory to to identify solicitors on the Darlington Building Society conveyancing panel for example in Welwyn Garden City?
We are not aware of any intention on the part of the BSA to develop such a register.
We had appointed conveyancing lawyers located in Welwyn Garden City on the Yorkshire BS solicitor approved list. They are now charging me a separate amount for dealing with the Yorkshire BS mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by Yorkshire BS?
Provided it is contained in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your property lawyer may charge a fee for this. The fee is not set by Yorkshire BS but by your Welwyn Garden City conveyancing practitioner. Numerous firms on the Yorkshire BS panel will charge an ‘acting for lender’ fee but many practices include it on their overall fee.
I have decided to exercise my right to buy my property in Welwyn Garden City off the council. I have a mortgage agreed with HSBC. Conveyancing is not something I have any knowledge of. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should have one. Any advice?
It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with HSBC, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the HSBC conveyancing panel.
I recently had an offer agreed on an apartment in Welwyn Garden City. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their solicitor. I paid an on account payment of £150. A couple of days later, the conveyancer called me to say that they were not on the UBS 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 UBS 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 close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our property in Welwyn Garden City and according to the buyers it appears that there is a risk of it being constructed on contaminated land. Any high street Welwyn Garden City conveyancer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the buyers are using a web based conveyancing firm rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Welwyn Garden City. Having lived in Welwyn Garden City for 5 years we know of no issue. Is it a good idea to get in touch with our local Authority to get confirmation need.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing solicitor currently acting for you. Are they able to advise? You must enquire of 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 health insurance to cover that same ailment)
It has been 3 months following my purchase conveyancing in Welwyn Garden City completed. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £200,000 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 residence 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.
Am I right to be wary that brokers that I am dealing with are suggesting a nationwide conveyancing firm as opposed to a local Welwyn Garden City conveyancing company?
As with lots of service providers, often input from family and friends can be worth their weight in gold. But there are many people with a keen interest in a conveyancing transaction; estate agents, financial adviser and banks might all recommend solicitors to retain. Sometimes these lawyers might be known to one of the organisations as being good in their field, but sometimes there behind the scenes commercial relationship behind the recommendation. You have the right to choose your own lawyer. You need to be aware that some lenders operate an approved list of law firms you are obliged to use for the lender related work in your transaction.
Our financial adviser has suggested using their property lawyer for our conveyancing in Welwyn Garden City - Is it not simpler better to just instruct them?
You need to establish if the estate agent is recommending a solicitor or introducing to a lawyer. There are plenty of Welwyn Garden City selling agents who recommend two or three Welwyn Garden City conveyancing firms purely based on those lawyers offering a great service.