I am selling my flat in Hartford and the EA has just called to say that the purchasers are swapping property lawyer. I am told that this is due to the fact that the lender will only engage with property lawyers on their approved list. On what basis would a major mortgage company only engage with specific law firms rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Hartford ?
Mortgage companies have always had an approved set of law firms they are willing to work with, but in recent years big names such as Lloyds Banking Group, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for over 25 years.
Banks point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Some 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.
Can I use your services to recommend a Conveyancing solicitor in Hartford even where I’m not buying or selling a house, for example if I wish to buy an office in Hartford with a loan from Accord Mortgages Ltd?
The service is primarily there to select domestic conveyancing solicitors in Hartford but we have recorded towards the bottom of this page a selection of Hartford commercial conveyancing firms. You will need to enquire with the firm directly to check if they are also authorised to represent Accord Mortgages Ltd
The Hartford conveyancing lawyers that I recently instructed on my house acquisition in Hartford have suddenly shut down. I only went with them because I had to have a firm on the Lloyds conveyancing panel and my family Hartford lawyer was not. I paid them £170 on account. What are my options?
Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then inform them immediately so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Lloyds conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new solicitors may be able to assist.
Have purchased a a detached house in Hartford , how long should it take for the Land Registry to register the transfer to my name? My Hartford conveyancing solicitor works at snail pace, so I want to check the land registry aspects are addressed.
As far as conveyancing in Hartford is concerned, registration is no quicker or slower than the rest of England and Wales. Rather than based on location, timescales can vary depending on the party submitting the application, whether there are errors and if the Land registry have to notify any interested persons or bodies. At present in the region of three quarters of submission are completed in less than three weeks but some can be subject to extensive hold-ups. Registration occurs after the new owner is living at the premises so an expedited registration is not always an essential issue but if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your lawyers can communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for the application to be prioritised.
I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I have offered on a fortnight ago in what was supposed to be a quick, no chain conveyancing. Hartford is the location of the property. Can you offer any advice?
Flying freeholds in Hartford are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Hartford you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds thoroughly. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Hartford may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.
To what extent are Hartford conveyancing solicitors under an obligation to the Law Society to issue clear conveyancing figures?
Contained within the Solicitors Code of Conduct are prescriptive rules and regulations as to how the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) allow solicitors to publicise their fees to clients.The Law Society have a practice note giving advice on how to publicise transparent charges to avoid breaching any such rule. Practice notes are not legal advice issued by the Law Society and is not to be interpreted as the only standard of good practice a conveyancing solicitor should adhere to. The Practice Note does, however, represent the Law Society’s perspective of acceptable practice for publicising conveyancing charges, and accordingly it’s a recommended read for any solicitor or conveyancer in Hartford or further afield.