I am progressing with the sale of my house in Mortimer and the EA has just text me to advise that the buyers are swapping property lawyer. I am told that this is due to the fact that the bank will only work with solicitors on their approved list. Why would a leading lender only deal with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to select for their conveyancing in Mortimer ?
Mortgage companies have always had an approved set 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 worked with them for more than 15 years.
Lending institutions attribute this action to a rise in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to keep an eye on. No lender will say 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 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 unlikely to have any impact on this.
Can you clarify what the consequences are if my lawyer’s firm is removed from the Principality Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Mortimer?
First, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit for a fee.
My wife and I are close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our house in Mortimer and according to the buyers it appears that there is a risk of it being constructed land that was not decontaminated. A local conveyancer would know this is not the case. For the life of me I don't know why the buyers are using a national conveyancing practice as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Mortimer. We have lived in Mortimer for 5 years we know that this is a non issue. Is it a good idea to contact our local Authority to seek confirmation need.
It would appear that you have a conveyancing solicitor already. What do they say? You need to enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same ailment)
How does conveyancing in Mortimer differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build premises in Mortimer come to us having been asked by the housebuilder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is finished. This is because new home sellers in Mortimer tend to buy 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 accustomed to new build conveyancing in Mortimer or who has acted in the same development.
Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and identified one round the corner in Mortimer I like with a park and station nearby, the downside is that it's only got 61 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Mortimer suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a short lease?
Should you require a home loan the shortness of the lease will likely be problematic. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the property for at least 2 years you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer about this matter.
My in 2007. He has got wed, widowed and is now remarried. He now intends to the sell the Mortimer property. I believe he will simply be need to provide a copy of his marriage certificates to the lawyer but he is worried it will hold up the sale of the apartment. Is it worth updating the Land Registry details for the house?
You are not required to bring up to date the title for the property as long as you have the proof needed to show how the name change has come about.
Any buyer’s solicitor should review the land registry entries and request evidence by way of proof of the change of name for instance marriage certificates.