My wife and I are looking to acquire a house in Dorchester and have instructed a Dorchester conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our property lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with a view to exchanging next week. Lloyds TSB Bank have this morning contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Dorchester conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
Where you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is conventional for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your bank and see 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 don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Dorchester solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
Do the conveyancing lawyers listed on your site conduct right to buy conveyancing in Dorchester?
We work with plenty of conveyancing practitioners who can service right to buy conveyancing You should call the conveyancers listed to get a costs illustration.
I have justbecome aware that Action Conveyancing have been shut down. They conducted my conveyancing in Dorchester for a purchase of a leasehold flat 12 months ago. How can I establish that the property is in my name in the name of the former proprietor?
The easiest method to check if the property is in your name, you can make a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Dorchester conveyancing specialists.
How does conveyancing in Dorchester differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in Dorchester approach us having been asked by the housebuilder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is built. This is because house builders in Dorchester typically buy 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 accustomed to new build conveyancing in Dorchester or who has acted in the same development.
Are there common problems that you encounter in leases for Dorchester properties?
There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Dorchester. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:
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A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the building Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
You may have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Lloyds TSB Bank, Bank of Scotland, and Platform Home Loans Ltd all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, obliging the buyer to pull out.
Dorchester Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to buying
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Can you tell me if there are any major works in the planning that will increase the service fees? What is the name of the managing agents? The answer will be helpful as a) areas may cause problems for the building as the common areas may start to deteriorate where services are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have a dispute with the managing agents you will want to know about it
Can you shed any light on the spectrum of conveyancing handled by Dorchester conveyancing solicitors?
For the most part Dorchester conveyancing firms tend to provide a number of assistance to home and land owners, sellers, buyers, freeholders and leaseholders such as:
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Property sale conveyancing in Dorchester or across the country
House purchase conveyancing in Dorchester and beyond
Local authority 'right to buy' conveyancing Probate conveyancing and court of protection Help to Buy Conveyancing in Dorchester or throughout England and Wales Advising in respect of rights of drainage, services, and access (Easements)