I am selling my home in Bodmin and the estate agent has just called to warn that the buyers are switching solicitor. The reason given is that the lender will only deal with solicitors on their approved list. On what basis would a major lender only work with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to choose to handle their conveyancing in Bodmin ?
Mortgage companies have always had panels of law firms that can act for them, but in recent years big names such as Nationwide, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for more than 15 years.
Banks point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been tightened 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 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. The buyers are not going to have any impact on this.
Our lawyer has uncovered a defect with the lease for the apartment we are buying in Bodmin. The other side have put forward defective title insurance as a workaround. We are happy with insurance and will cover the costs. Our lawyer says that he must ensure that the bank is happy with this solution. Who is the client here, us or the bank?
The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the risk of a conflict of interest, you and the mortgage company are the client. Your property lawyer must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects with the lease so that the mortgage company can be afforded the opportunity to check with their valuer as to the extent that the value of the property is affected. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your conveyancer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.
Is there a search tool that I can utilise to discover of the solicitor handling my conveyancing in Bodmin is on the mortgage lender’sapproved panel? I am looking to avoid the situation of having one lawyer for me and one for Lloyds TSB Bank thus spending £187.00 plus VAT in additional conveyancing costs.
Please do make use of the find a lender approved solicitor tool on this page. Please choose the lender and type ‘Bodmin’ or your location and you will discover numerous conveyancers located in Bodmin or nearest you.
I am aiming to move property in October. Will my conveyancing solicitor communicate with the removal company on the day of completion. Incidentally, can you recommend a removal company in Bodmin. Conveyancing solicitor was found before I stumbled across this website.
On the day of completion you can collect the keys from your estate agent however this can only happen once the vendors lawyers inform the agent that they have the completion monies and the keys can be released. You can advise the removal men that you are ready to move in. As a matter of policy we do not suggest a specific removal organisation but can assist you in locating a conveyancing in Bodmin or a lawyer that specialises in conveyancing in Bodmin.
My partner and I have arranged the release of further funds on our home loan from Nationwide as we intend to carry out renovations to our house in Bodmin. Do we need to appoint a nearby Bodmin solicitor on the Nationwide conveyancing panel to handle the paperwork?
Nationwide would not normally appoint firms on their approved list of lawyers to handle the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Nationwide panel.
My sealed bid on a detached house in Bodmin has been accepted, the vendors do nevertheless have a tied purchase. The sellers have offered on somewhere, but it’s not been accepted yet, and have viewings of other flats in the pipeline. I have selected a local conveyancing solicitor in Bodmin. What do I do now? At what point should I apply for the mortgage with Clydesdale?
It is normal to have anxieties where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket too early (mortgage application is approx one thousand pounds, then survey, Bodmin conveyancing search fees, etc). The first thing to do is check that your property lawyer is on the Clydesdale approved list. Regarding the subsequent phase this very much depends on the uniqueness of your transaction, desire for this property and on the state of the market. In a buoyant market the majority of buyers would apply for a home loan with Clydesdale and arrange for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they ask their conveyancer to proceed with searches.
Should my conveyancer be making enquiries concerning flooding as part of the conveyancing in Bodmin.
The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for conveyancers dealing with homes in Bodmin. There are those who purchase a property in Bodmin, fully aware that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, leaving to one side the physical destruction, where a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, satisfactory building insurance, or sell the premises. Steps can be carried out as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.
Conveyancers are not best placed to give advice on flood risk, however there are a numerous checks that may be initiated by the buyer or on a buyer’s behalf which can figure out the risks in Bodmin. The conventional set of completed inquiry forms supplied to a buyer’s lawyer (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) includes a standard question of the vendor to find out if the premises has historically flooded. In the event that flooding has previously occurred and is not notified by the seller, then a purchaser could commence a claim for damages as a result of such an misleading reply. A purchaser’s conveyancers should also carry out an environmental report. This should reveal if there is any known flood risk. If so, further investigations should be initiated.
I'm buying my first flat in Bodmin benefiting from help to buy. The builders refused to reduce the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of extras instead. The estate agent advised me not disclose to my conveyancer about the side-deal as it will put at risk my mortgage with Clydesdale. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.
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.