I am selling my apartment in Longford and the EA has just e-mailed to advise that the purchasers are swapping solicitor. I am told that this is due to the fact that the mortgage company will only deal with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. Why would a major lender only deal with specific lawyers rather the firm that they want to appoint for their conveyancing in Longford ?
Lenders have always had panels of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the past few years big names such as HSBC, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for more than 15 years.
Lenders point to the increase in fraud as the reason for the cull – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms 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. Your purchasers are not going to have any impact on this.
The Longford conveyancing firm handling our Longford conveyancing has spotted a discrepancy when comparing the information in the valuation report and what is revealed within the title deeds. My lawyer says that he is obliged to ensure that the lender is OK with this discrepancy and is content to go ahead. Is my lawyer’s course or action appropriate?
Your conveyancer must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook specifications which do require that your lawyer disclose any incorrect assumptions in the lender’s valuation report and the legal papers. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.
My grandfather passed away last year and as sole heir and executor I was left the house in Longford. The house had a small mortgage left on it of around £5k. I want to have the title changed into my name whilst I re-mortgage to Santander, pay off the mortgage. Is this possible?
If you intend to re-mortgage then Santander will require that you use a conveyancer on the Santander conveyancing panel. Here is link to the Land Registry online guidance around what to do when a property owner dies. This will help you to understand the registration process behind changing the details re the registered title. in your case it would appear that you are effectively purchasing the property from the estate. Your Santander conveyancing panel solicitor pays the new mortgage money into the estate, the estate pays off the old mortgage, the charge is released and you become the owner and the Santander mortgage is registered as a charge at the Land Registry.
I happen to be the sole beneficiary of my late grandmother’s will and I have everything in my name now, including the house in Longford. Conveyancing formalities meant that the Land Registry date was in July. I now wish to sell up. I understand that there is a Mortgage Lenders six month 'rule', meaning my proprietorship will be considered the same way as though I had purchased the house in July. Will no one buy the property for half a year?
The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook mandates solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you could be caught by that. How sensible a view lenders take of it, depend on the lender as this obligation is primarily there to capture the purchase and immediately sell or the flipping of properties.
My wife and I have organised a further advance on our home loan from Nottingham as we want to carry out alterations to our home in Longford. Are we obliged to appoint a local Longford solicitor on the Nottingham conveyancing panel to handle the legals?
Nottingham would not normally require a member of their approved list of lawyers to deal with such a matter. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Nottingham list.
Last month we had a mortgage agreed in principle with Clydesdale. Longford conveyancing solicitors were selected. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from Clydesdale?
Some lenders take longer than others. Have Clydesdale done the survey? Have you informed Clydesdale as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.
I've recently bought a leasehold house in Longford. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?
Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.
If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).
Having spent years of correspondence we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Longford. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?
if there is a absentee landlord or if there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the LVT to assess the premium.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Longford residence is 164 Nestles Avenue in October 2013. The tribunal agreed with the proposed price of £20,158 for the freehold and determined that that sum is the amount to be paid into court This case affected 2 flats. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 69 years.
Should one as executor remove a departed person's name from the title register for a property in Longford?
If a Longford property is jointly owned and one of the owners dies, the name will not immediately be removed from the title deeds. It is not necessary to remove their name as when it comes to a disposal you would just be asked to supply proof as to the reason the co owner is not included in the contract, such as the probate documents.
With a view to making things simpler in the future you may arrange to have the deceased name removed from the title entries by applying to HM Land Registry with proof of the death. There is no fee from the Registry for this service.