My wife and I are hoping to buy a property in Woolwich and have instructed a Woolwich conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our conveyancer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Lloyds TSB Bank have this morning contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Woolwich solicitor is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?
If you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is conventional for the purchasers' solicitors to also represent the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Woolwich lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
We are about to sign contracts for a leasehold flat in Woolwich. We encountered a stumbling block. Our mortgage offer with Lloyds TSB Bank runs out on 29/12/2026 but the owners are insisting on a completion date of 31/12/2026. Is it possible to prolong the mortgage expiry date?
The best person to deal with your issue is your solicitors who is in a position to determine whether they better off negotiating with the mortgage company, vendor’s solicitors, selling agents or possibly all three taking into account what has gone on in your house move to date.
My husband and I are hoping to buy a 1 bedroom apartment in Woolwich with a loan from TSB.We use our Woolwich conveyancing lawyer but TSB says he's not listed on their "panel". we are left little option but to use a TSB panel firm or retain our preferred solicitor and fork out for a TSB panel lawyer to represent them. We feel as though this is unjust; Can we not simply insist that TSB use our lawyer?
No, not really. The home loan offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, a common one being that lawyers needs to be on the TSB approved list. 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. Another option that might be available is for your solicitors to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for TSB
Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my home are lost. The conveyancers who conducted the conveyancing in Woolwich 10 years ago have long since closed. What do I do?
Nowadays there are duplicates made of almost everything, and your conveyancer will be aware precisely where to locate all the relevant documentation so you can buy or sell your property without any difficulty. Where copies can’t be found, your solicitor may be able to put in place insurance or indemnities protecting you against possible claims on your property.
I opted to have a survey carried out on a house in Woolwich ahead of retaining conveyancers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold element to the property. The surveyor has said that some mortgage companies may refuse to issue a loan on such a premises.
It varies from the lender to lender. HSBC has different requirements for example to Nationwide. If you contact us we can check with the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Woolwich. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
I was advised by a few property agents in Woolwich to find a property lawyer on your site. Is there a financial incentive for Estate Agents to market your site ahead of a competitor’s?
We don’t offer any commission for directing people our way. We found it would be just too difficult to pay a commission as home movers will think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I getting any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.