Is the fact that my solicitor in Lisson Grove is not on my mortgage company's conveyancing panel that there is a problem with the standard of her work?
That is most likely a wrong assumption to make. There are all sorts of perfectly reasonable explanations. A recent report by the solicitors regulator revealed 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The top 5 reasons are as follows: (1) lack 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. Should you be concerned you should simply call the Lisson Grove conveyancing practice and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for your mortgage company.
I have paid off my mortgage with Clydesdale. I assume I don't need a Lisson Grove solicitor on the Clydesdale panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?
If you have finished paying off your Clydesdale mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Clydesdale mortgage from the register. Clydesdale, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Clydesdale has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Clydesdale has instructed the Land Registry to do so
Having digested plenty of house buying guides, I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Lisson Grove solicitor - who is on the Barclays conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?
Barclays will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Barclays will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. Your conveyancer will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by your Lisson Grove postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Barclays, you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Lisson Grove.
Our sealed bid on a semi in Lisson Grove has been agreed to, the owners do however have a dependent purchase. The vendors have offered on a flat, however it’s not yet tied up, and are looking at other apartments in the pipeline. I have selected a bricks and mortar conveyancing solicitor in Lisson Grove. What should be my next step? At what stage should I apply for the mortgage with Principality?
It is understandable to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket prematurely (mortgage application is approx £1k, then valuation, Lisson Grove conveyancing search charges, etc). The first thing to do is check that your conveyancer is on the Principality conveyancing panel. Regarding the subsequent steps this very much dictated by the circumstances of your case, attraction to this property and on the state of the market. During a buoyant market many purchasers will apply for a home loan with Principality and arrange for the valuation and only if it was satisfactory would they ask their conveyancing practitioner to proceed with searches.
Should commercial conveyancing searches reveal impending roadworks that could affect a commercial land in Lisson Grove?
Its becoming the norm that commercial conveyancing solicitors in Lisson Grove will conduct a SiteSolutions Highways report as it reduces the time that conveyancers expend in looking into accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Lisson Grove. The search result sets out definitive data on the adoption status of roads, footpaths and verges, as well as the implication of traffic schemes and the rights of way surrounding a commercial development sites in Lisson Grove.
For each commercial conveyancing transaction in Lisson Grove it is critical to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. Failure to identify developments where adoption procedures have not been addressed adequately could result in delays to Lisson Grove commercial conveyancing deals as well as present a risk to future intentions for the site. These searches are not ordered for domestic conveyancing in Lisson Grove.
I am buying a new build house in Lisson Grove with the aid of help to buy. The developers would not reduce the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of extras instead. The sale representative told me not disclose to my solicitor about this extras as it would adversely affect my mortgage with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer 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.
Due to the guidance of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Lisson Grove ahead of retaining solicitors. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold element to the house. My surveyor advised that some banks tend not grant a loan on a flying freehold home.
It varies from the lender to lender. Santander has different requirements for example to Halifax. Should you wish to telephone us we can check with the appropriate lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Lisson Grove. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Lisson Grove especially if they are familiar with such properties in Lisson Grove.
I have been recommended by numerous estate agents in Lisson Grove to locate a solicitor on your site. Is there a financial advantage for Estate Agents to offer your services ahead of another?
We refuse to give any commission for sending work in our direction. We thought it would be too underhand a fee as home movers will think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not receiving any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.