I am five weeks into the sale of my apartment in Ampthill and the EA has just text me to advise that the buyers are swapping property lawyer. The reason given is that the lender will only deal with solicitors on their approved list. Why would a major lender only deal with certain law firms rather the firm that they want to select to handle their conveyancing in Ampthill ?
Mortgage companies have always had an approved set of law firms they are willing to work with, but in recent years big names such as Yorkshire Building Society, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for more than 25 years.
Mortgage companies justify this action to a rise in fraud as the reason for the cull – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says 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. Your buyers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.
Last June we completed a house move in Ampthill. We have noticed several issues with the property which we suspect were overlooked in the conveyancing searches. Is there anything we can do? Can you clarify the type of searches that needed to have been conducted as part of conveyancing in Ampthill?
The question is not clear as to the nature of the problems and if they are unique to conveyancing in Ampthill. Conveyancing searches and investigations undertaken as part of the legal transfer of property are carried out to help avoid problems. As part of the legal transfer of property, a seller completes a form referred to as a Seller’s Property Information Form. If the information is inaccurate, then you may have a claim against the owner for any losses that you have suffered. The survey should have identified any problems with the structure of the property. Assuming a detailed survey was carried out and the issues were not identified, you may have a claim against the surveyor. However, if you did not have a full survey, you may be responsible for fixing any defects that have now been noted. We would always encourage buyers to take every possible step to ensure they are completely aware of the condition of a property before purchase regardless of whether they are buying in Ampthill.
It has been 3 months since my purchase conveyancing in Ampthill concluded. I have checked the Land Registry website which shows that I paid £150,000 when infact I paid £180,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the premises from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
I'm purchasing my first flat in Ampthill benefiting from help to buy. The developers refused to budge the amount so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The house builders rep advised me not reveal to my lawyer about this side-deal as it could put at risk my mortgage with the lender. Is this normal?.
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.
Taking into account that I will soon spend 450k on a property in Ampthill I wish to have a conversation with the conveyancer about myconveyancing ahead of giving the go ahead to the firm. Is this something that you can arrange?
We could not agree more - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you first talking to the conveyancer who will be doing your property ownership legalities in Ampthill.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is an important person, not a case number. The practices that we put you in touch with believe that the figure you are calculated and presented to you for residential conveyancing in Ampthill should be the amount on the final invoice that you end up paying.
Am I better off to choose a Ampthill conveyancing lawyer who is local to the property I am hoping to buy? An old friend can handle the legal work but his firm is located 300miles away.
The primary upside of using a local Ampthill conveyancing practice is that you can attend the office to execute documents, present your ID and pester them if necessary. Having local Ampthill know how is a benefit. That being said it's more important to get someone that will do a good and efficient job. If you know people who instructed your friend and the majority were content that must surpass using an unknown Ampthill conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being local.