I am one month into the sale of my flat in Higham Wood and the EA has just telephoned to advise that the buyers are changing their property lawyer. The reason given is that the lender will only work with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. Why would a big named mortgage company only engage with specific lawyers rather the firm that they want to select to handle their conveyancing in Higham Wood ?
Lenders have always had panels of law firms they are content to work with, but in recent years big names such as Yorkshire Building Society, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for more than 15 years.
Lending institutions attribute this action to a rise in fraud by way of justification 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 claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your buyers are not going to have any impact on this.
My partner and I are downsizing from our house in Higham Wood and according to the buyers it appears that there is a risk of it being constructed land that was not decontaminated. A high street Higham Wood conveyancer would know this is not the case. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers are using a factory type conveyancing practice rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Higham Wood. Having lived in Higham Wood for 5 years we know that this is a non issue. Should we get in touch with our local Authority to get clarification need.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing lawyer already. Are they able to advise? You need to check with your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same sickness)
Over the last few months I have been searching for a ground for flat up to £245,000 and identified one near me in Higham Wood I like with amenity areas and transport links in the vicinity, however it only has 61 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Higham Wood in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a lease with such few years left?
If you need a home loan that many years will likely be a potential deal breaker. Discount the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current proprietor has owned the property for at least 2 years you can ask them to start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor concerning this matter.
I have been pointed in your direction by numerous property agents in Higham Wood to locate a conveyancer on your site. What’s the financial advantage for Estate Agents to promote your services over a competitor’s?
We refuse to give any referral fee for pointing buyers and sellers to this site. We found it would be just too difficult to pay a commission as a client could think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not getting any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.
My father-in-law has recommend that I appoint his lawyers for conveyancing in Higham Wood. Should I use them?
Much as we are happy to recommend a Higham Wood conveyancing lawyer it’s preferable to find a conveyancing practitioner is to have guidance from friends or relatives who have actually used the solicitor that you are considering.
We are about to purchasing a property in Higham Wood. Can the conveyancing practitioner have our purchase price private from sites such as Nestoria. How can this be done?
HM Land Registry are legally obliged to specify price paid data on the official title for residential properties countrywide including properties in Higham Wood. The Title Register is an open document, so the Land Registry would be breaching their statutory obligations if they did not grant access to the register.
In essence you can ask the Land Registry to withhold the amount paid entry yet the answer would be a No.