Am I correct in assuming that the fact that my conveyancer in Hove is not identified on my mortgage company's conveyancing panel that there is a problem with the quality of the firm’s conveyancing?
That would more than likely be a wrong assumption to make. There are all sorts of perfectly plausible explanations. Just recently a report by the solicitors regulator indicated that over three quarters of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The most common reasons for removal are: (1) low volume of transactions (2) the lawyer is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. Where you are concerned you should contact the Hove conveyancing practice and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for your mortgage company.
What does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in Hove? Why is this being asked of me?
To satisfy the Money Laundering Regulations any Hove conveyancing firm will require evidence of your identity in all conveyancing matters. This is usually satisfied by provision of a passport and an original bank statement or utility account showing where you live.
Under Money Laundering Regulations, conveyancing solicitors are duty bound to check not just the identity of conveyancing clients but also the source of the money that they receive in respect of any matter. An unwillingness to disclose this may lead to your lawyer cancelling their retainer with you, as clearly this will cause a conflict between the set Regulations and a refusal to disclose.
Your conveyancers are duty bound to inform the appropriate authorities should they believe that any monies received by them may contravene the Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering rules.
My friend suggested that where I am purchasing in Hove I should carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?
A search of this type is usually quoted for as part of the standard Hove conveyancing searches. It is a large report of about 40 pages, listing and detailing important information about Hove around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Hove Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime details, Local Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information concerning Hove.
The deeds to my home can not be found. The conveyancers who dealt with the conveyancing in Hove 4 years ago no longer exist. What are my options?
Assuming you have a registered title the information relating to your ownership will be retained by the Land Registry with a Title Number. It is easy to conduct a search at the Land Registry, locate your house and get current copies of the Registered Entries for less than a fiver. Where the title is Leasehold then the Land Registry will usually retain a certified duplicate of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be retrieved for a small fee.
I am buying a new build house in Hove with a loan from Nationwide Building Society. The developers would not move on the amount so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The house builders rep told me not inform my solicitor about this deal as it may adversely affect my mortgage with the bank. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
How easy is it to transfer to a new firm as I have to select a firm on the Platform Home Loans Ltd conveyancing panel. I instructed a family conveyancing solicitor in Hove round the corner but he is not accepted by Platform Home Loans Ltd
It would be our pleasure to help you select a conveyancing solicitor in Hove on the Platform Home Loans Ltd panel. Please note that the conveyancers that we work with do not pay us commission if you instruct them and are fully regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority who regulate all conveyancing solicitors in Hove. In making use of search facility on this site, you can compare and instruct different solicitors and conveyancers both nationally and in Hove.