I am selling my house in Abbey Wood and the estate agent has just text me to say that the purchasers are switching solicitor. I am told that this is due to the fact that the mortgage company will only deal with solicitors on their approved list. On what basis would a leading lender only work with specific law firms rather the firm that they want to appoint for their conveyancing in Abbey Wood ?
UK lenders have always had an approved set of law firms they are content to work with, but in recent years big names such as HSBC, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for many years.
Banks attribute this action to a rise in fraud as the reason for the pruning – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to keep an eye on. 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. Some 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 unlikely to have any impact on this.
My lawyer has uncovered a a legal deficiency with the lease for the property we are purchasing in Abbey Wood. The other side have suggested title insurance as a workaround. We are content with insurance and will cover the costs. Our property lawyer says that he must check that the mortgage company is content with this solution. Who is the client here, us or the bank?
Regardless of the fact that you have a mortgage offer from the mortgage company does not mean to say that the property will meet their specifications for the purposes of a mortgage. Your lawyer has to ensure that the lease has to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. You and the bank are the client. The appropriate lender provisions have to be complied with.
My colleague suggested that if I am buying in Abbey Wood I should carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
This is a search is occasionally included in the estimate for your Abbey Wood conveyancing searches. It is not a small report of more than thirty pages, listing and detailing significant information about Abbey Wood around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Abbey Wood Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime details, Local Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data concerning Abbey Wood.
I have justdiscovered that Action Conveyancing have closed. They carried out my conveyancing in Abbey Wood for a purchase of a leasehold apartment 9 months ago. How can I be sure that my home is registered correctly in the name of the former proprietor?
The quickest method to see if the property is registered to you, you can carry out a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Abbey Wood conveyancing specialists.
What does commercial conveyancing in Abbey Wood cover?
Abbey Wood conveyancing for business premises covers a broad range of services, offered by regulated solicitors, relating to business premises. By way of example, this area of conveyancing can cover the sale or purchase of freehold business premises or, more commonly, the assignment of existing business tenancies or the drafting of new leasing arrangements. Commercial conveyancing solicitors can also offer advice on the sale of business assets, commercial loans and the termination of leases.
Is it best to use a Abbey Wood conveyancing practitioner based in the location that I am hoping to buy? I have an old university friend who can perform the legal work but his firm is located approximately 350kilometers away.
The primary upside of using a local Abbey Wood conveyancing practice is that you can pop in to sign documents, hand in your identification documents and apply pressure on them if necessary. They will also have local intelligence which is a plus. However it's more important to get someone that will do a good and efficient job. If you know people who used your friend and they were happy that should outweigh using an unknown Abbey Wood conveyancing lawyer solely due to them being local.