I am selling my home in Cotham and the EA has just text me to say that the purchasers are changing their law firm. The excuse is that the mortgage company will only engage with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a leading mortgage company only engage with certain lawyers rather the firm that they want to select for their conveyancing in Cotham ?
Banks have always had an approved set of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the last few years big names such as Santander, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for more than 25 years.
Banks point to the increase in fraud as the reason for the pruning – 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 claims that it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Some do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your purchasers are not going to have any sway in the decision.
It is 10 years ago since I purchased my house in Cotham. Conveyancing lawyers have just been appointed on the sale but I can't find the deeds. Is this a major issue?
You need not be too concerned. First the deeds may be with your lender or they may be in the possession of the solicitor who handled your purchase. Secondly the likelihood is that the land will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to prove you own the property by your conveyancing solicitors obtaining current official copies of the land registers. Nearly all conveyancing in Cotham involves registered property but in the rare situation where your home is not registered it adds to the complexity but is resolvable.
I have been told that property searches are a common cause of obstruction in Cotham house deals. Is this right?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) published determinations of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature amongst the top 10 causes of delays in the conveyancing process. Searches are not likely to feature in any slowing down conveyancing in Cotham.
I used Wolstenholmes a few years ago for my conveyancing in Cotham. I now require my file but the law firm has closed. What do I do?
Do call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracking down your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Cotham of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously retained, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold element on a property I put an offer in a fortnight ago in what was supposed to be a straight forward, no chain conveyancing. Cotham is where the house is located. Can you offer any advice?
Flying freeholds in Cotham are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Cotham you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds diligently. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Cotham may ascertain that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold property.
Taking into account that I am about to part with hundreds of thousands of pounds on a property in Cotham I wish to have a conversation with the conveyancer regarding thehouse move before appointing 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 solicitor who will be carrying out your conveyancing in Cotham.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is an important person, not a case reference. The practices that we put you in touch with believe that the figure you are provided with for residential conveyancing in Cotham should be the amount on the final invoice that you end up paying.