Me and my fiance are buying a 3 bedroom apartment in Willesden with a mortgage. We wish to retain our Willesden solicitor, but the mortgage company advise he's not on their "panel". It seems we have little option but to select one of the mortgage company panel conveyancing practices or keep our Willesden property lawyer as well as pay for one of their panel firms to represent them. We regard this is inequitable; is there anything we can do?
No, not really. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your Willesden conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
In what way does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in Willesden? Why is this being asked of me?
In order to comply with Money Laundering Regulations any Willesden conveyancing firm will require evidence of your identity in all conveyancing transactions. This is usually satisfied by provision of a passport and an original bank statement or utility account showing your correct address.
Under Money Laundering Regulations, property lawyers are obliged by law to investigate not just the identity of conveyancing clients but also the origin of fund that they receive in respect of any matter. An unwillingness to disclose this may lead to your conveyancer cancelling their retainer with you, as clearly this will cause a conflict between the set Regulations and a refusal to disclose.
Your conveyancers will have an obligation to notify the relevant authorities should they consider that any amounts received by them may contravene the Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering rules.
Do I have to pop into the offices of the solicitor to sign the legal charge? If so, I will choose one who does conveyancing in Willesden so that I can pop in to their offices if required.
Whereas this was necessary 12 years ago, most lenders no longer need their conveyancing panel lawyer to witness the borrowers signature. It will still be necessary for you to hand over ID documents and there are still manifest benefits to using a locally based ayer, in your situation a conveyancing solicitor in Willesden.
My uncle advised me that in buying a property in Willesden there may be various restrictions as to what one can do in terms of external alterations to a property. Is this right?
There are anumerous of properties in Willesden which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to carry out external variations. Part of the conveyancing in Willesden should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.
We are due to move house in June. Should my conveyancing solicitor liaise with the removal company on the day of completion. As an aside, can you suggest a removal company in Willesden. Conveyancing lawyer was found prior to coming across your site.
On the day of completion you will need to collect the house keys from your property agent but this should only happen once the sellers lawyers confirm to the agent that they have the completion monies and the keys can be given over. After that you can inform the removal company that you are ready to move in. We are not in a position to suggest a specific removal company but can help you find a conveyancing in Willesden or a firm with expertise in conveyancing in Willesden.
How can we know in advance if a Willesden conveyancing solicitor on the Virgin Money panel is any good?
When it comes to conveyancing in Willesden getting recommendations is a good start. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one which is cheap as chips. We would always advocate that you speak with the lawyer handling your conveyancing.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up as part of conveyancing in Willesden?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Willesden. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
I am purchasing a new build house in Willesden with the aid of help to buy. The builders would not move on the amount so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The property agent told me not inform my lawyer about the side-deal as it will impact my mortgage with the lender. Is this normal?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer 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.