I am one month into the sale of my ground floor flat in Ferndown and the estate agent has just telephoned to advise that the buyers are changing their property lawyer. I am told that this is due to the fact that the bank will only work with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a major lender only deal with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Ferndown ?
Banks have always had panels of law firms that can act for them, but in the past few years big names such as HSBC, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for decades.
Lending institutions point to the increase in fraud as the reason for the reduction – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms are unaware that 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 sway in the decision.
As a FTB what is the most important piece of guidance you can impart about purchase conveyancing in Ferndown?
Not many law firms or advisers will tell you this but conveyancing in Ferndown or throughout Dorset is an adversarial experience. In other words, when it comes to conveyancing there is plenty of room for conflict between you and others involved in the transaction. For example, the seller, property agent and sometimes your mortgage company. Appointing a lawyer for your conveyancing in Ferndown an important selection as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the ONE party in the process whose interest is to look after your legal interests and to protect you.
There is a distinct ongoing adversarial element to conveyancing- someone must be at fault for the process being so protracted. We recommend that you your first instinct should be to trust your conveyancer ahead of all other players when it comes to the legal assignment of property.
We are buying a property and the solicitor has identified Chancel Repair for which the property may be obligated to pay as it falls into the area of such a church. He has recommended insurance. Is this really appropriate for conveyancing in Ferndown
Unless a prior acquisition of the property completed post 12 October 2013 you may expect solicitors handling conveyancing in Ferndown to continue to advocate a chancel search and or insurance against a claim.
I used Stirling Law a few years ago for my conveyancing in Ferndown. I now require my papers but the law firm has closed. What do I do?
Do call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracing your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Ferndown of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously retained, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
I am looking for a ground for flat up to £245,000 and identified one near me in Ferndown I like with a park and station nearby, however it only has 61 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Ferndown in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a short lease?
Should you need a home loan that many years will likely be problematic. Discount the price by the expected lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you could request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor regarding this.
As co-executor for the estate of my uncle I am disposing of a property in Cardiff but reside in Ferndown. My conveyancer (approximately 260 miles awayhas requested that I sign a statutory declaration prior to completion. Could you suggest a conveyancing practitioner in Ferndown who can witness this legal document for me?
Technically speaking you are unlikely to need to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Normally or notary public or qualified solicitor will do regardless of whether they are Ferndown based