My fiance and I swapping mortgage lender for our penthouse in West Hampstead with Yorkshire BS. We have a son 19 who lives at home. Our solicitor requested us to identify any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the property is repossessed. I have two questions (1) Is this document specific to the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we remortgaged 4 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this giving up his entitlement to inherit the property?
On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Yorkshire BS. This is solely used to protect Yorkshire BS if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Yorkshire BS had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
Forgive me if this question is silly but I am new to the house moving as FTB of a ground floor flat in West Hampstead. Do I pick up the keys to the property on completion from my solicitor? If this is the case, I will find a local conveyancing solicitor in West Hampstead?
On the day of completion you will not be required to go to the conveyancers office in West Hampstead. Your solicitors will electronically transfer the purchase money to the owner’s solicitors, and shortly after the monies have arrived, you will be called to receive the keys from the Estate Agents and start moving into the property. This tends to happen early afternoon.
Is it the case that all West Hampstead CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors are on the Aldermore conveyancing panel?
Some major lenders now utilise the accreditation scheme as the starting point for Panel approval such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS accreditation however is no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for firms wishing to join their approved list of firms.
I was told four weeks ago that my mortgage has been agreed to by Barclays. Is it usual for Barclays to only issue the offer once my solicitor in West Hampstead is approved on their conveyancing panel? Barclays have asked my solicitor to see a copy of their Professional Indemnity Insurance Schedule.
A lender would not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Barclays to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the Barclays conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
I used Action Conveyancing a few years ago for my conveyancing in West Hampstead. I now require my papers however the law firm has closed. What do I do?
You should contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracing your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in West Hampstead of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously used, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
How does conveyancing in West Hampstead differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in West Hampstead come to us having been asked by the housebuilder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is built. This is because builders in West Hampstead usually acquire 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 conveyancing solicitors 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 West Hampstead or who has acted in the same development.
I need to instruct a conveyancing solicitor in West Hampstead for my remortgage. Is it possible to see a firm’s record with the profession’s regulator?
You can search for published Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) decisions stemming from inquisitions from 2008 onwards. Visit Check a solicitor's record. For information Pre 2008, or to check a solicitors history, telephone 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 any week day save for Tuesday when lines open at 9.30am. International callers, call +44 (0)121 329 6800. The regulator could recorded telephone calls for training requirements.
I need to switch lawyers as my West Hampstead lawyer is not on the bank's panel of conveyancing solicitors. Is it practical to instruct different lawyers?
In the event that you have not formally instructed a solicitor to start work and at this stage simply received quotes, you're perfectly free to choose a different solicitor to carry out your work for you. The best way is to get recommendations from friends or family who have actually used the solicitor or conveyancer in West Hampstead that you're considering.