My solicitor has uncovered a a legal deficiency with the lease for the flat we are buying in Chalk Farm. The other side have offered title insurance as a solution. We are content with insurance and will pay for it. Our solicitor says that he must ensure that the mortgage company is content with this solution. Who is the client here, us or the mortgage company ?
The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the potential for a conflict of interest, you and the mortgage company are the client. Your property lawyer must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook specifications. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects with the lease so that the bank 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 property lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.
We see that you have a search directory listing solicitors on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel. Do companies pay you a commission if I appoint them for our conveyancing in Chalk Farm?
We are a listing service only for law firms wishing to communicate if they are on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel or other lender panels. We do not charge referral fees to any conveyancer that you subsequently appoint for your conveyancing in Chalk Farm.
My fiance and I wish to acquire a newly converted flat in Chalk Farm with a loan from Yorkshire Building Society.We have a Chalk Farm conveyancing solicitor but Yorkshire Building Society says she’s not on their "panel". It seems we have no choice but to instruct a Yorkshire Building Society panel lawyer or retain our high street solicitor and fork out for a Yorkshire Building Society panel lawyer to represent them. This seems very unfair; Can we not simply insist that Yorkshire Building Society use our lawyer?
No, not really. The loan issued to you contains terms and conditions, a common one being that solicitors must be on the Yorkshire Building Society conveyancing panel. in the past, most lenders had large numbers of solicitors on their panels: a borrower could find 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 lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Yorkshire Building Society
My wife and I own a renovated Edwardian house in Chalk Farm. Conveyancing practitioner represented me and Lloyds TSB Bank. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and there are two entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold under the matching address. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?
You should read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Chalk Farm and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with buyers. You can also check the situation with the conveyancing lawyer who conducted the conveyancing.
I opted to have a survey carried out on a property in Chalk Farm in advance of retaining conveyancers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold aspect to the house. My surveyor has said that some mortgage companies will not issue a mortgage on a flying freehold house.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Lloyds has different instructions from Halifax. Should you wish to call us we can check via the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Chalk Farm. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
My financial adviser has recommended their property lawyer for the conveyancing in Chalk Farm - won’t it be advisable to just instruct them?
It is not always the case and you are free to opt for whichever conveyancer of your choosing for your Chalk Farm home move. A lawyer suggested by an estate agent may not always be the right property lawyer, they may put forward their preferred conveyancing firm who are based remotely. In this instance you may not have contact with your lawyer and due to the lack of continuity in the transaction, it may be difficult to obtain progress reports.