I was advised recently by my financial adviser that my Fleetwood property lawyer is not on the mortgage company Conveyancing panel. How can I check?
The sensible course of action for you to take is to call your Fleetwood lawyer directly. You lawyer should notify you of the situation. Where they are not on the panel they could put your in touch with solicitors on the conveyancing panel for your lender.
My wife and I are purchasing a brand new flat in Fleetwood and my conveyancer is telling me that she is duty bound to the bank to disclose incentives from the builder. I am on a tight deadline to sign contracts and my preference is not to prolong the conveyancing. Is my lawyer right?
You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your solicitor. A precondition to being on a mortgage company panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.
It is is a decade since I acquired my home in Fleetwood. Conveyancing lawyers have now been retained on the sale but I can't find the title deeds. Is this a major issue?
Don’t worry too much. First the deeds may be kept by your lender or they may be in the possession of the lawyers who acted in the purchase. Secondly the chances are that the land will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to prove you are the registered owner by your conveyancing lawyers procuring up to date copy of the land registers. Most conveyancing in Fleetwood relates to registered property but in the rare situation where your home is not registered it adds to the complexity but is resolvable.
I have been on the look out for a flat up to £195,000 and found one round the corner in Fleetwood I like with amenity areas and transport links nearby, the downside is that it's only got 61 years on the lease. There is not much else in Fleetwood for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a short lease?
Should you need a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term will be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current proprietor has owned the property for at least twenty four months you could ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer about this.
I was advised by numerous property agents in Fleetwood to find a solicitor on your site. What’s the financial advantage for Estate Agents to market your site over and above alternative conveyancing organisations?
We don’t make any referral fee for directing people in our direction. We thought it would be too underhand a fee as a client could think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I getting any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.
Our solicitor in Fleetwood has uncovered a defect with the lease for the property we are purchasing in Fleetwood. The other side have offered title insurance as a solution. We are content with insurance and will pay for it. Our lawyer has advised that as he is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel he must ensure that the lender is happy with this solution. Are we the client or is the bank?
The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the potential for a conflict of interest, you and the mortgage company are the client. A precondition to being on the lender approved panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects will the lease so that the bank can be afforded the opportunity to check with their valuer as to the extent that the value of the property is affected . Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.