I am in the process of selling my ground floor flat in Winterton and the EA has just telephoned to say that the buyers are appointing a new property lawyer. The excuse is that the mortgage company will only work with solicitors on their approved list. On what basis would a leading mortgage company only deal with specific lawyers rather the firm that they want to appoint for their conveyancing in Winterton ?
UK lenders have always had panels of law firms that can represent them, but in the past few years big names such as Yorkshire Building Society, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for more than 15 years.
Lending institutions 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 buyers are not going to have any impact on this.
My grandfather passed away 10 months ago and as sole heir and executor I was left the property in Winterton. The house had a relatively small loan remaining of approximately £8000. I want to have the title changed into my name whilst I re-mortgage to Principality, pay off the mortgage. Is this possible?
If you plan to refinance then Principality will require that you use a conveyancer on the Principality conveyancing panel. Here is link to the Land Registry online guidance around what to do when a property owner dies. This will help you to understand the registration process behind changing the details re the registered title. in your case it would appear that you are effectively purchasing the property from the estate. Your Principality conveyancing panel solicitor pays the new mortgage money into the estate, the estate pays off the old mortgage, the charge is released and you become the owner and the Principality mortgage is registered as a charge at the Land Registry.
I can see plenty of information on this site concerning conveyancing in Winterton but can you isolate your top tip for choosing the right conveyancer in Winterton
Do not opt for the cheapest Winterton conveyancing quote. You really do get what you’re paying for when it comes to property lawyers. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you go into the conveyancing with your eyes wide open.
We previously selected conveyancing lawyers with offices in Winterton on the UBS solicitor panel. They are now charging me a separate amount for handling the UBS mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by UBS?
Unfortunately, as long as it is in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your solicitor may charge a fee for this. This fee is not dictated by UBS but by your Winterton conveyancing practitioner. Some firms on the UBS panel will charge an ‘acting for lender’ fee but plenty of firms incorporate it on their overall fee.
I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Yorkshire BS. I assume I don't need a Winterton lawyer on the Yorkshire BS panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.
If you have finished paying off your Yorkshire BS mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Yorkshire BS mortgage from the register. Yorkshire BS, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Yorkshire BS has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Yorkshire BS has instructed the Land Registry to do so
I am purchasing a new build house in Winterton with a mortgage from Norwich and Peterborough Building Society. The builders refused to budge the price so I negotiated 6k of additionals instead. The property agent told me not inform my conveyancer about this side-deal as it will adversely affect my loan 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 have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and found one round the corner in Winterton I like with open areas and station in the vicinity, however it's only got 49 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Winterton suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?
Should you require a mortgage the shortness of the lease may be a potential deal breaker. Discount the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.
I'm selling a property in Winterton. I can find my conveyancer's company on the CLC list, but I can't find my lawyer's name on the list. Should I be concerned?
Not all staff in the practice must be listed by the regulator. Provided there is a manager qualified to 'oversee' the conveyancing, the actual day-to-day activity can be undertaken by unlicensed staff.