It has come to my attention via my mortgage adviser that my Willen solicitor is not on the lender Solicitor panel. What can I do to be sure if this is correct?
The first thing you need to do is to contact your Willen lawyer directly. You lawyer should inform you of the situation. If they are not on the panel they could put your in touch with solicitors on the approved list of lawyers for your bank.
Can you explain why leasehold purchase conveyancing in Willen is more expensive?
Willen leasehold conveyancing transactions usually involve additional investigations than freeholds including investigating the Lease, liaising with the Landlord such as serving appropriate notices on the Landlord or managing agent, obtaining up-to-date service charge and management information, obtaining Landlord’s consents and reviewing management accounts and formation documents.
I have been told that property searches are a common reason for hinderance in Willen conveyancing transactions. Is there any truth in this?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) released determinations of research by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature within the common causes of hindrances in the conveyancing process. Searches are not likely to be the root cause of slowing down conveyancing in Willen.
Due to the encouragement of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Willen ahead of instructing lawyers. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold element to the property. My surveyor has said that some banks will refuse to issue a loan on this type of premises.
It varies from the lender to lender. Bank of Scotland has different requirements for example to Nationwide. If you e-mail us we can investigate further via the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Willen. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
Should I choose a Willen conveyancing practitioner who is local to the property I am purchasing? An old friend can conduct the conveyancing but her office is 300miles away.
The benefit of a local Willen conveyancing firm is that you can attend the office to execute documents, deliver your identification documents and pester them where appropriate. They will also have local knowledge which is a plus. That being said nothing is more important than finding someone that will do a good and efficient job. If other friends have used your friend and on the whole were content that must trump using an unknown Willen conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being local.
18 days into buying a house in Willen. Conveyancing lawyer has called to say the property is "Leasehold". Does this make a difference on our Santander valuation?
Willen conveyancing does not in most situations involve leasehold houses. The crucial consideration here is the remaining lease term and the ground rent. If there are over a hundred years remaining with a nominal rent, it's virtually freehold, so it’s unlikely to affect the marketability significantly.
On the flip side, if it's, say, Sixty years it is bound to have a significant impact on the value, and most likely wouldn't be mortgageable. The remaining lease term and ground rent will be specified in the lease to be supplied to your conveyancer.