My wife and I are planning to acquire a home in Eastbourne and have appointed a Eastbourne conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our property lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with a view to exchanging next week. Barclays Direct have this morning contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Eastbourne conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?
If you are buying a property needing a mortgage it is standard for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent 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 property lawyer should contact your lender 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 as you are at liberty to use your preferred Eastbourne lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
Last February we completed a house move in Eastbourne. We have since encountered a number of problems with the property which we suspect were omitted in the conveyancing searches. Is there anything we can do? What searches should? have been ordered as part of conveyancing in Eastbourne?
The query is vague as what problems have arisen and if they are specific to conveyancing in Eastbourne. Conveyancing searches and due diligence undertaken as part of the buying process are designed to help avoid problems. As part of the legal transfer of property, a property owner fills in a document called a Seller’s Property Information Form. answers proves to be incorrect, you could possibly take legal action against the owner for any losses that you have suffered. The survey should have identified any problems with the structure of the property. Assuming a detailed survey was carried out and the issues were not identified, you may have a claim against the surveyor. However, if you did not have a full survey, you may be responsible for fixing any defects that have now been noted. We would always encourage buyers to take every possible step to ensure they are completely aware of the condition of a property before purchase regardless of whether they are buying in Eastbourne.
As a novice what is the most important number one tip you can impart regarding purchase conveyancing in Eastbourne?
You may not hear this from too many lawyers but conveyancing in Eastbourne or throughout England and Wales is often a confrontational process. Put another way, when it comes to conveyancing there exists an abundance of opportunity for confrontation between you and others involved in the transaction. For instance, the vendor, estate agent and sometimes the mortgage company. Appointing a law firm for your conveyancing in Eastbourne is a critical decision as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the SOLE party in the legal process whose responsibility is to look after your best interests and to keep you safe.
On occasion a third party with a vested interest may attempt to persuade you that it is in your interests to do things their way. For instance, the selling agent may claim to be helping by suggesting your conveyancer is slow. Or your mortgage broker may tell you to do something that is contrary to your conveyancers recommendation. You should always trust your lawyer above all other parties when it comes to the legal transfer of property.
I am purchasing my first flat in Eastbourne benefiting from help to buy. The sellers would not move on the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of additionals instead. The house builders rep suggested that I not inform my conveyancer about the deal as it will jeopardize my loan with the lender. Is this normal?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
I need to retain a conveyancing solicitor for freehold conveyancing in Eastbourne. I have chance upon a site which looks to be the ideal offering If it is possible to get all formalities completed via web that would be preferable. Should I be wary? 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?
Finally our conveyancing in Eastbourne is set to complete on Friday, however the person I am purchasing off wishes to move out 24 hours later at at 2pm. Do I agree to this?
If you require a loan then your property lawyer will demand that you have vacant possession on Friday - the bank will insist on it.