My wife and I are hoping to purchase a house in Margam and are in fact using a Margam conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. HSBC Bank have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Margam conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?
When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is normal for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Margam lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
We are due to move property in June. Does my conveyancing solicitor liaise with the removal company on the completion day. As an aside, can you recommend a removal company in Margam. Conveyancing solicitor was organised before I stumbled across this site.
On the afternoon of completion you will need to pick up the house keys from the selling agent but this can only happen after the sellers solicitors confirm to the agent that the monies to complete are in and the keys can be passed over. After that you will need to inform the removal company that you are ready to move in. We do not suggest a specific removal company but can help you find a conveyancing in Margam or a firm with expertise in conveyancing in Margam.
I currently have a mortgage with Virgin Money for my property in Margam. Conveyancing has been completed some time ago. If I am intending to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Virgin Money?
You must advise Virgin Money before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Virgin Money’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will permit you to let out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Virgin Money directly. You need not do this via a Virgin Money conveyancing panel firm.
Completion of my remortgage has taken place for my property in Margam. Conveyancing was of an acceptable standard but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. How does one go about formally complaining?
All banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first port of call should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Department at head office. In most cases complaints to a lender are resolved very quickly. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR with full details of your complaint.
Should commercial conveyancing searches reveal impending roadworks that may affect a commercial site in Margam?
Many commercial conveyancing solicitors in Margam will conduct a SiteSolutions Highways report as it reduces the time that conveyancers expend in investigating accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Margam. The report 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 Margam.
For every commercial conveyancing transaction in Margam it is crucial to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. Failure to identify developments where adoption procedures have not been dealt with adequately can result in delays to Margam commercial conveyancing deals as well as pose a risk to future plans for the site. These searches are not carried out for residential conveyancing in Margam.
How does conveyancing in Margam differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build premises in Margam contact us having been asked by the developer to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the residence is completed. This is because house builders in Margam tend to purchase the land, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Margam or who has acted in the same development.
I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold element on a house I have offered on last month in what was supposed to be a simple, chain free conveyancing. Margam is where the house is located. Can you offer any opinion?
Flying freeholds in Margam are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Margam you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds very carefully. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Margam may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.
My partner and I have AIP from Alliance & Leicester who suggested we could borrow up to £300k. At what point do we need to appoint a lawyer for conveyancing? Margam is where we plan to move to.
It would be wise to appoint a property lawyer now so that the conveyancer can open the ledger so they can conduct the ID checks etc. If and when you wish them to commence work you will be asked for a deposit usually approximately £175. That would generally be after you have the loan offer from the lender and survey back, nevertheless should you wish to expedite the process you can get going sooner even though you may be risking some money.