Am I correct in assuming that the fact that my solicitor in East Ham is not listed on my lender's conveyancing panel that there is a problem with the standard of her work?
That is most likely a wrong assumption to make. There are all sorts of perfectly reasonable explanations. Just recently a report by the solicitors regulator revealed that over three quarters of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The most common reasons for removal are: (1) lack of transactions (2) the solicitor is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. If you are concerned you should simply call the East Ham conveyancing practice and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for your bank.
It is is a decade since I bought my property in East Ham. Conveyancing solicitors have recently been instructed on the sale but I am unable to find the title deeds. Is this a problem?
Don’t worry too much. First there is a chance that the deeds will be retained by the mortgage company or they may be in the possession of the lawyers who oversaw your purchase. Secondly in all probability the title will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you are the registered owner by your conveyancing lawyers acquiring current official copies of the land registers. Almost all conveyancing in East Ham relates to registered property but in the unlikely event that your home is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is not insurmountable.
We are expecting a mortgage offer soon. The lender mentioned the home loan came with free conveyancing. Does this mean I have to use their panel conveyancer as I would prefer to appoint a high street conveyancing solicitor in East Ham?
You should check but the the probability is that appoint one of their panel conveyancers should you want the "fee-free" offer. Speak to the mortgage company and check if they offer you a monetary alternative. It is not unheard for a lender to give a £250 cashback as an alternative in which case you could put that amount towards the cost for your conveyancing solicitor in East Ham.
My bid for a property was accepted at auction in East Ham. Conveyancing is required. What is next?
Having exchanged you now have to find a conveyancing lawyer soon as you will have a fast approaching a fixed date to complete the purchase. All auction property should have a bespoke auction pack. This will likely include the copy title deeds, local authority and drainage searches. If you have purchased leasehold premises the legal pack should contain a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and associated conveyancing documentation relating to a leasehold property. You must hand this to your appointed conveyancing solicitor at the earliest opportunity. Do make sure that your finances are organised to complete the transaction on the set completion date.
We had chosen conveyancers based in East Ham on the UBS solicitor approved list. They have just invoiced me an additional fee for dealing with the UBS mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by UBS?
Unfortunately, so long as it is in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your conveyancing practitioner can charge a fee for this. This fee is not set by UBS but by your East Ham conveyancer. Plenty of firms on the UBS panel will charge ’dealing with mortgage’ fee and others do not.
The formalities of my purchase has taken place for my property in East Ham. Conveyancing was a necessary evil but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. How do I make a complaint?
Almost all banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first port of call should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Team at head office. In most cases complaints to a lender are sorted out effectively and efficiently. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service with full details of your complaint.
As co-executor for the will of my grandfather I am selling a property in Swansea but live in East Ham. My conveyancer (who is 260 kilometers awayrequires that I execute a statutory declaration prior to completion. Could you suggest a conveyancing lawyer in East Ham who can attest and place their company stamp on the document?
strictly speaking you should not be required to have the documents witnessed by a conveyancing solicitor. Normally or notary public or solicitor will be fine regardless of whether they are East Ham based
I've recently bought a leasehold flat in East Ham. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?
Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.
If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).
I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord to extend my lease without success. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on such matters? Can you recommend a East Ham conveyancing firm to assist?
in cases where there is a absentee freeholder or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the LVT to decide the sum to be paid.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a East Ham property is 46 Credon Road in January 2014. On 11 September 2013 Deputy District Judge Price sitting at the Bow County Court made a vesting order that the freeholder surrender his lease and be granted a new lease of the Premises on such terms as may be determined by the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber).The appropriate sum as concluded by the Tribunal was £7225 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term as at the valuation date was 69.77 years.
