Am I correct in assuming that the fact that my conveyancer in West Sussex is not listed on my mortgage company's solicitor panel that there is a problem with the quality of his conveyancing?
That would more than likely be a wrong assumption to make. There are all sorts of perfectly reasonable explanations. A recent report by the solicitors regulator indicated 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The top 5 reasons are as follows: (1) lack of transactions (2) the lawyer is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. Should you be concerned you should simply call the West Sussex conveyancing firm and enquire why they are no longer on the approved list for your mortgage company.
My uncle pointed out to me me that in purchasing a property in West Sussex there could be a number of restrictions affecting the ability to carry out external alterations to the property. Is this right?
There are a number of properties in West Sussex which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to perform external alterations. Part of the conveyancing in West Sussex should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.
We previously appointed conveyancing lawyers with offices in West Sussex on the Virgin Money solicitor panel. They are now charging me a separate amount for the legal aspects of the Virgin Money mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by Virgin Money?
Provided it is contained in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your lawyer can levy a fee for this. This charge is not set by Virgin Money but by your West Sussex lawyer. Some firms on the Virgin Money panel will levy ’dealing with mortgage’ fee and others do not.
After weeks of negotiation I have agreed a price on a house in West Sussex. My financial adviser suggested a property lawyer. I paid an on account payment of £175. A couple of days later, the solicitor called me sheepishly admitting that they were not on the RBS 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 RBS 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.
What can a local search reveal about the house I am buying in West Sussex?
West Sussex conveyancing often commences with the applying for local authority searches directly from your local Authority or through a personal search company for instance Onsearch The local search is essential in every West Sussex conveyancing purchase; as long as you wish to avoid any nasty once you have moved into your new home. The search should provide data on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the property (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 subject areas.
I am buying a new build house in West Sussex with the aid of help to buy. The sellers would not move on the price so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The estate agent advised me not disclose to my lawyer about this side-deal as it may jeopardize my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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.
I'm refinancing my primary house to a BTL loan with Birmingham Midshires and intend to use the remaining equity as a down payment on another property. The neighborhood we are talking about is West Sussex. Will your conveyancers be able to act for both sets of lenders and link together the two deals?
Do use our comparison tool on this page to ensure that the solicitors are approved by both mortgage companies. On the basis that they are your conveyancer will be able to connect the two conveyancing matters but you should talk with you conveyancer and specify your desired outcome and requirements.
As co-executor for the estate of my grandfather I am disposing of a house in Swansea but I am based in West Sussex. My conveyancer (based 200 kilometers awayhas requested that I sign a stat dec before completion. Can you recommend a conveyancing lawyer in West Sussex who can attest this legal document for me?
strictly speaking you are unlikely to be required to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily or notary public or solicitor will do regardless of whether they are located in West Sussex