I am one month into the sale of my flat in Dereham and the EA has just e-mailed to advise that the purchasers are appointing a new law firm. I am told that this is due to the fact that the lender will only deal with solicitors on their approved list. On what basis would a leading mortgage company only deal with certain lawyers rather the firm that they want to select for their conveyancing in Dereham ?
UK lenders have always had panels of law firms that can represent them, but in recent years big names such as Santander, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for more than 15 years.
Mortgage companies blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to keep an eye on. 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. Plenty of firms 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. The buyers are not going to have any impact on this.
we are a couple who are buying a 1 bedroom apartment in Dereham with a loan from Accord Mortgages Ltd.We use our Dereham conveyancing lawyer but Accord Mortgages Ltd informed us he's not on their approved list of member firms. We have to appoint a Accord Mortgages Ltd panel firm or retain our preferred solicitor and pay for one of their panel ones to represent them. This seems very unfair; is there anything we can do?
No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, a common one being that solicitors will be on the Accord Mortgages Ltd approved list. in the past, most lenders had large numbers of law firms 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 solicitors to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Accord Mortgages Ltd
My stepmother informed me that in buying a property in Dereham there could be a number of restrictions prohibiting external changes to a property. Is this right?
There are anumerous of properties in Dereham which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to perform external alterations. Part of the conveyancing in Dereham should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.
is it true that all Dereham solicitor practices on the Nationwide conveyancing panel are regulated by the SRA?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the Nationwide conveyancing panel they would need to be governed by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. Some lenders do allow licenced conveyancers on their panel and in such a situation the practice would be governed by the CLC.
Coventry BS have agreed my mortgage in principle, my offer on a property in Dereham has been agreed to, what happens next?
The estate agent will need to be advised as to your conveyancer's details (be sure the conveyancing practitioners are on the bank’s approved list). Call up Coventry BS or your broker and finalise any relevant documentation. Coventry BS will appoint a valuer who will get in contact with the selling agent or seller to arrange a time for the valuation to take place. Once conducted (assuming no problems) it takes about a fortnight to receive the mortgage offer. Coventry BS will issue the offer to you and your conveyancers. The legal work will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing in Dereham.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold element on a house I have offered on a fortnight ago in what was supposed to be a straight forward, chain free conveyancing. Dereham is where the house is located. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in Dereham are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Dereham you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Dereham 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 residence.
I need to find a conveyancing solicitor for leasehold conveyancing in Dereham. I've chance upon a site which looks to be the ideal offering If it is possible to get all the legals completed via web that would be preferable. Should I be concerned? What are the potential pitfalls?
As usual with these online conveyancers you need to read ALL the small print - did you notice the extra charge for dealing with the mortgage?
My husband and I are acquiring a garden flat in Dereham. When we first instructed conveyancer, they said that they were on all major UK lender panels. The financial adviser called yesterday to say that they don't appear to be on the Yorkshire BS approved list. Should that be true, what should we do? Do we simply choose a different conveyancing practitioner that is on their approved list or should we pay for dual representation, with Yorkshire BS selecting their own preferred property lawyer.
Where you are purchasing a property requiring a mortgage it is conventional for the purchaser’s solicitors to also act for the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a conveyancer has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the conveyancing practitioner to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the conveyancing practitioner has to fulfill. Some banks now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should call Yorkshire BS to find out if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on Yorkshire BS's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Dereham lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another solicitor into the mix.