I am nearing exchange of contracts for my ground floor flat in Lyneham and the estate agent has just text me to warn that the purchasers are swapping property lawyer. The reason given is that the bank will only engage with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a big named mortgage company only engage with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Lyneham ?
Mortgage companies have always had panels of law firms that can represent them, but in the past few years big names such as Lloyds Banking Group, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for many years.
Banks point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the pruning – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to keep an eye on. Banks tend not to disclose how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Some 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 purchasers are not going to have any impact on this.
Can you help? My Lyneham lawyer is advising me that he has toconduct Lyneham conveyancing searches asthe firm are on the Virgin Moneyconveyancing panel. Is this really necessary?
You have limited options available to you. Given that you are taking out a loan with a bank your solicitor has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the CML Conveyancing Handbook. Your conveyancer would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of your lender’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to comply with the CML Handbook conditions . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Lyneham conveyancing searches.
We're in Lyneham, First time buyers buying with a mortgage (lender is Nationwide , and our lawyer is on the Nationwide conveyancing panel). How long should the conveyancing process take?
The fact that your lawyer is on the Nationwide conveyancing panel is a help. It would almost certainly delay matters if they were not. However, no property lawyer should guarantee a timeframe for your conveyancing, due to third parties outside of your control such as delays caused by lenders,conveyancing search providers or by the other side’s solicitors. The time taken is often determined by the number of parties in a chain.
We are getting the release of further monies on our home loan from Lloyds as we intend to conduct improvements to our property in Lyneham. Are we obliged to appoint a high street Lyneham solicitor on the Lloyds conveyancing panel to handle the paperwork?
Lloyds do not ordinarily require a member of their approved list of lawyers to deal with the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Lloyds panel.
Last month we had a mortgage agreed in principle with RBS. Lyneham conveyancing lawyers are chosen. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from RBS?
Some lenders take longer than others. Have RBS done the survey? Have you informed RBS as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the RBS conveyancing panel? Sometimes it can take as long as six weeks for a mortgage offer to be issued.
I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Aldermore. I assume I don't need a Lyneham conveyancer on the Aldermore panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?
If you have finished paying off your Aldermore 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 Aldermore mortgage from the register. Aldermore, 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 Aldermore has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Aldermore has instructed the Land Registry to do so
I am looking for a ground for flat up to £305k and identified one round the corner in Lyneham I like with a park and station in the vicinity, however it's only got 52 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Lyneham for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?
Should you require a home loan the shortness of the lease will be an issue. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the property for a minimum of 2 years you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.
My brother has urged me to appoint his conveyancers in Lyneham. Do I take his guidance?
No doubt the best way to select a conveyancing practitioner is to seek feedback from friends or family who have experience in using the conveyancer you're are thinking of instructing.