I am helping my step-mother sell her property in North Somerset. Will the conveyancing solicitor commission an EPC or it is for me to see to?
Following the abolition of HIPs, EPC’s was kept a mandatory element of selling a property. An EPC needs to be commissioned in advance of the property being placed on the market. This is not a task that solicitors ordinarily organise. Where you are instructing a North Somerset conveyancing lawyer they might be able to arrange energy assessments due to their contacts with long established local accredited person
I have paid off my mortgage with Leeds Building Society. I assume I don't need a North Somerset property lawyer on the Leeds Building Society panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?
If you have finished paying off your Leeds Building Society 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 Leeds Building Society mortgage from the register. Leeds Building Society, 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 Leeds Building Society has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Leeds Building Society has instructed the Land Registry to do so
Intending to buy a apartment in North Somerset. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Building Society if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the RBS conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the North Somerset lawyer is on the RBS conveyancing panel.
I am purchasing a property and the conveyancer has referenced Chancel Repair to which the house may be liable given it’s proximity to the area of such a church. She has suggested insurance. Is this strictly warranted for conveyancing in North Somerset
Unless a previous acquisition of the property completed post 12 October 2013 you can take it that lawyers delivering conveyancing in North Somerset to remain recommending a chancel search and or insurance against a claim.
I used Stirling Law several years ago for my conveyancing in North Somerset. Now, I need the files but the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?
Do call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in North Somerset of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously used, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
I'm purchasing a new build house in North Somerset with a loan from Santander. The sellers would not move on the amount so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The estate agent advised me not reveal to my solicitor about this deal as it may put at risk my mortgage with Santander. Is this normal?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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.
I opted to have a survey completed on a house in North Somerset in advance of retaining solicitors. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold aspect to the property. Our surveyor advised that some banks will refuse to issue a mortgage on a flying freehold premises.
It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different instructions from Halifax. If you e-mail us we can look into this further with the relevant mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in North Somerset. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
We have recently had a bid accepted on our first home in North Somerset, and are about to get solicitors lined up. I have utilised the different rating tools and the fee estimates are from all across the the UK. Is it advisable to have a North Somerset solicitor local to our potential property? I am happy to do all the communicating electronically, but I guess at some point we may be required to physically go into the lawyer's office to sign documents?
There is no requirement to physically visit the office of your conveyancing practitioner, they can send any relevant documents to you, which you can sign and send back. Many buyers and sellers choose to use a locally based solicitor, but it's by no means essential for conveyancing in North Somerset.