My husband and I wish to acquire a 1 bedroom flat in Harefield with a loan from Nationwide Building Society.We like our Harefield conveyancing lawyer but Nationwide Building Society says she’s not on their "panel". It seems we have no choice but to instruct a Nationwide Building Society panel firm or retain our high street solicitor and pay for a Nationwide Building Society panel lawyer to represent them. We feel as though this is unjust; Can we not simply insist that Nationwide Building Society use our lawyer?
Unfortunately,no. The mortgage offered to you contains terms and conditions, one of which will be that solicitors will be on the Nationwide Building Society conveyancing panel. Until recently, most mortgage companies had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could find one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Nationwide Building Society
I am buying a victorian detached house in Harefield. Our aim is to carry out a loft conversion at the property.Will the conveyancing process involve investigations to see if these works were previously refused?
Your solicitor will check the deeds as conveyancing in Harefield can on occasion reveal restrictions in the title deeds which prevent certain works or need the consent of a 3rd party. Certain works require local authority planning permissions and approval in accordance building regulations. Many areas are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which frequently prevent or impact extensions. You should check these things with a surveyor ahead of any purchase.
Intending to buy a house in Harefield. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Building Society if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Harefield property lawyer is on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel.
I had an offer accepted on a property in Harefield on 5/6/2024, valuation was booked 3 days later, received a clean bill of health. Solicitor instructed, so all that was missing was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to HSBC and chasing them on my offer, I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the HSBC conveyancing panel. Can the lender hold off the offer?
Mortgage companies tend not to not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for HSBC to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the HSBC conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
I own a terraced Edwardian house in Harefield. Conveyancing lawyer acted for me and Bank of Scotland. I did a free Land Registry search last week and there are a couple of entries: one for freehold, the second leasehold with the exact same property. I'd like to know for sure, how can I find out??
You need to assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Harefield and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with lenders. You can also question the situation with the conveyancing solicitor who conducted the purchase.
How does conveyancing in Harefield differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build property in Harefield come to us having been asked by the developer to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is constructed. This is because builders in Harefield tend to purchase the real estate, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Harefield or who has acted in the same development.
My company is planning to lease a unit on a shopping parade. Can you recommend lawyers offering competitive costs for commercial conveyancing in Harefield for below 2k?
We are happy to recommend firms who have an in-depth of experience of commercial conveyancing in Harefield, including the disposal and acquisition of businesses as well as simply premises. Whether you are intending to buy or sell a shop, pub, restaurant, office, retail unit or a complete business we can find you the right lawyer. Regarding the charges this will depend on the structure and terms of the proposed transaction. Please provide us with your details or telephone so as to enable us to supply you with a detailed commercial conveyancing calculation.
Do online conveyancing organisations do everything a local Harefield solicitor does or do I still need to retain a solicitor for the final stages for my conveyancing in Harefield?
If you choose an online conveyancer they will cover all the tasks your Harefield conveyancer would cover.