It is is a decade since I purchased my house in Boreham. Conveyancing lawyers have now been retained on the sale but I am unable to find my deeds. Will this jeopardise the sale?
You need not be too concerned. First the deeds may be with the mortgage company or they could be archived with the conveyancers who acted in your purchase. Secondly the chances are that the title will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to prove you are the registered owner by your conveyancing lawyers procuring up to date copy of the land registers. Most conveyancing in Boreham relates to registered property but in the unlikely event that your property is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is resolvable.
We wanted to use a property lawyer in Boreham for our house move. Our financial adviser has since advised us that our bank Britannia won't deal with them. Surely this is unfair competition?
Banks normally restrict either the category or the number of conveyancing solicitors on their panel. Typical examples of such criteria being that a law practice must have two or more partners. In addition to restricting the type of firm, some have limited the number of solicitor practices they use to represent them. You should note that Britannia have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any member of Britannia Conveyancer Panel. Mortgage fraud was a key driver in the rationalisation of solicitor panels since 2008 even though there are differing opinions regarding the level of solicitor engagement in some of that fraud. Data from the Land Registry indicate that plenty of law firms, including some in or near Boreham only execute very few conveyances per annum.
Me and my partner are purchasing a apartment in Boreham. I might seem paranoid but how we can trust a solicitor? On completion day we will need to put our life savings into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our deposit?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
I happen to be the sole recipient of my late grandmother’s estate with all property in now in my sole name, including the my former home in Boreham. The Boreham property was put into my name in October. I now wish to sell up. I understand that there is a Mortgage Lenders 6 month 'rule', meaning my proprietorship may be considered the same way as if I'd bought the property in October. Is the property unsalable for six months?
The CML handbook obliges solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you could be affected by that. Most mortgage companies would take a pragmatic view as this requirement is primarily there to pick up on subsales or the wholesaling and assigning of property.
We had appointed conveyancing lawyers located in Boreham on the Bank of Ireland solicitor panel. They are now charging me an additional sum for dealing with the Bank of Ireland mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by Bank of Ireland?
Provided it is contained in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your property lawyer can charge a fee for this. This fee is not set by Bank of Ireland but by your Boreham lawyer. Some firms on the Bank of Ireland panel will charge an ‘acting for lender’ fee but some firms include it on their overall fee.
What does a local search reveal about the property I am buying in Boreham?
Boreham conveyancing often starts with the submitting local authority searches directly from your local Authority or via a personal search company for instance Xpress Legal The local search is essential in every Boreham conveyancing purchase; as long as you wish to avoid any unpleasant once you have moved into your property. The search should reveal data on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the property (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 topic areas.
How does conveyancing in Boreham differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build property in Boreham approach us having been asked by the housebuilder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is built. This is because house builders in Boreham tend to acquire the real estate, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct property lawyers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Boreham or who has acted in the same development.
Should I be suspicious that third parties that I am dealing with are encouraging me to use an internet conveyancing firm rather than a local Boreham conveyancing practice?
As is the case with many professional services, often suggestions from family and friends can be worth their weight in gold. But there are lots of people with a keen interest in a conveyancing transaction; estate agents, financial adviser and lenders might all put forward solicitors to retain. Sometimes the conveyancers might be known to one of the organisations as experts in their field, but occasionally there may be a financial incentive behind the endorsement. You have the discretion to select your own lawyer. However, bear in mind that many banks operate an approved list of law firms you must use for the lender related work in your conveyancing.