I am six weeks into the sale of my house in Whickham and the estate agent has just called to warn that the buyers are changing their conveyancer. The excuse is that the lender will only deal with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. Why would a leading lender only deal with certain law firms rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Whickham ?
Mortgage companies have always had panels of law firms that can represent them, but in the past few years big names such as HSBC, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for more than 15 years.
Mortgage companies blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the pruning – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. Banks tend not to reveal how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The purchasers are unlikely to have any impact on this.
I am need of leasehold conveyancing for a flat in a relatively new development (five years built) in Whickham. 95% of the flats have already been sold. Do I need carry out the neighbourhood searches for my conveyancing in Whickham?
Conveyancing Searches are a central link in the Whickham conveyancing process. There are hundreds search providers who offer Whickham conveyancing searches, as well straight from the local authority. These are generally termed personal search companies due to them carrying out, personal searches. Nevertheless, all Local Authority Search conveyancing products have one thing in common - they must secure their information from the local authoritative source.
My flat in Whickham is up for sale and I have a purchaser. Will my property lawyer have to be required to be on the Nottingham conveyancing panel in order to deal with paying off my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Nottingham conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. It might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their requirements fairly frequently in recent years.
What is the difference between a licensed conveyancer and conveyancing solicitor in Whickham
There are many recorded licenced Conveyancers in Whickham and Solicitor partnerships in Whickham to choose from We would stress that the two are supervised by regulatory bodies with both specialising in the legal aspects of the home buying process. They may both also deal with other property legal work such as remortgage conveyancing, lease extensions and transfer of equity conveyancing.
I am due to exchange contracts on my flat. I had a double glazing fitted in January 2010, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's mortgage company, UBS are being problematic. The Whickham solicitor who is on the UBS conveyancing panel is recommending indemnity insurance as a solution but UBS are requiring a building regulation certificate. Why do UBS have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that UBS have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why UBS may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
Intending to buy a house in Whickham. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Lender if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Whickham conveyancing practitioner is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel.
Should our lawyer be raising questions regarding flooding during the conveyancing in Whickham.
Flooding is a growing risk for lawyers dealing with homes in Whickham. Plenty of people will acquire a property in Whickham, completely aware that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, leaving to one side the physical destruction, where a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, adequate insurance cover, or sell the premises. Steps can be carried out as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.
Lawyers are not qualified to offer advice on flood risk, however there are a number of checks that may be undertaken by the buyer or by their solicitors which should give them a better appreciation of the risks in Whickham. The standard completed inquiry forms supplied to a buyer’s solicitor (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) includes a standard question of the vendor to find out if the property has historically flooded. In the event that flooding has previously occurred which is not revealed by the owner, then a buyer may bring a legal claim for losses resulting from an misleading answer. The buyer’s lawyers should also order an environmental report. This should disclose if there is a recorded flood risk. If so, more detailed inquiries will need to be carried out.
How does conveyancing in Whickham differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in Whickham come to us having been asked by the builder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the residence is built. This is because house builders in Whickham typically 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 conveyancers 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 used to new build conveyancing in Whickham or who has acted in the same development.