Our nephew is about to exchange on a newly built flat in Egham with a mortgage from Barclays. His solicitor has said that there is a delay in receiving the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. This document is news to me - what is it and who needs sight of it?
The form is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the purchase. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Barclays conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the valuer when requested. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Barclays conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
Why do I have to pay up front for conveyancing in Egham?
If you are buying a property in Egham your lawyer will ask you to provide them with funds to cover the search fees. Normally this is requested to cover the fees of the conveyancing searches. If any deposit is as part of the total price then this should be asked for immediately before exchange of contracts. Any further balance that is due should be transferred shortly before completion.
I have an AIP. The lender mentioned the home loan came with free conveyancing. Is the implication that I have to use their panel solicitor as I would prefer to instruct a Egham based conveyancing firm?
Do check but the the probability is that give you one of their panel conveyancers should you take up the "fee-free" deal. Call the bank to see if they allow a cash alternative. Some banks have previously offered a £250 cashback as an alternative in which case that money can go towards the cost for your conveyancing solicitor near Egham.
My wife and I are purchasing a flat in Egham. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a solicitor? At some point we will need to deposit money into their account. What protection do we have from them run away with our money?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
We previously instructed conveyancing lawyers based in Egham on the Lloyds solicitor panel. They are now charging me a further fee for dealing with the Lloyds mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by Lloyds?
As unfair as it may seem, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your property lawyer can charge a fee for this. The charge is not set by Lloyds but by your Egham conveyancing practitioner. Some firms on the Lloyds panel will levy an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.
I am currently in the process of buying my council flat in Egham. I have a mortgage offer with Skipton. Conveyancing is new to me. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should use one. Any advice?
It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with Skipton, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Skipton conveyancing panel.
My friend advised me that if I am purchasing in Egham I should carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
A search of this type is occasionally quoted for as part of the standard Egham conveyancing searches. It is a large document of about 40 pages, listing and setting out important information about Egham around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime details, Egham Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data regarding Egham.
Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my property are lost. The lawyers who handled the conveyancing in Egham 10 years ago no longer exist. What are my options?
Gone are the days when you need to have the physical original deeds to evidence that you are the owner of your registered land or premises, given that the Land Registry have everything they need in a digital format.