I am selling my house in Notting Hill. Will the solicitor have to be required to be on the Co-operative conveyancing panel in order to deal with repayment of my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Co-operative conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. It might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their panel criteria fairly frequently in recent years.
We are getting the release of further funds on our home loan from Kent Reliance as we wish to conduct a loft conversion to our house in Notting Hill. Are we obliged to choose a bricks and mortar Notting Hill solicitor on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel to deal with the paperwork?
Kent Reliance don't usually appoint firms on their conveyancing panel to handle the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel.
I am selling my apartment. I had a double glazing fitted in September 2006, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's lender, TSB are being a right pain. The Notting Hill solicitor who is on the TSB conveyancing panel is recommending indemnity insurance as a solution but TSB are requiring a building regulation certificate. Why do TSB have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that TSB have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why TSB may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
I had an offer accepted on an apartment in Notting Hill on 12/11/2025, valuation was booked 2 days after, all came back fine. Conveyancer instructed, so the only thing outstanding was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to Nationwide and chasing them on my offer, I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the Nationwide conveyancing panel. Can the lender hold off the offer?
Mortgage companies tend not to not issue a mortgage until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Nationwide to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the Nationwide conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
A friend recommended that if I am purchasing in Notting Hill I should ask my conveyancer to carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?
This is a search is usually included in the estimate for your Notting Hill conveyancing searches. It is not a small document of about 40 pages, listing and setting out important information about Notting Hill around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime statistics, Notting Hill Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data regarding Notting Hill.
How does conveyancing in Notting Hill differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build residence in Notting Hill come to us having been asked by the developer to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is ready to move into. This is because house builders in Notting Hill tend to purchase the site, 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 conveyancing solicitors 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 Notting Hill or who has acted in the same development.
I'm remortgaging my current property to a buy to let mortgage with Nationwide Building Society and I will use the rest of the raised equity towards further house. The neighborhood we are talking about is Notting Hill. Will your conveyancers be able to act for both sets of banks and tie in the two deals?
Make use of our comparison tool on this site to check that the solicitors are on the relevant lender panels. On the basis that they are your conveyancer should be able to tie up the two deals but you should have a chat with you lawyer and communicate your expectations and requirements.
Builders have put forward a solicitor and I've received an estimate from them. They are almost £250 cheaper than my preferred Notting Hill conveyancer. What's the catch?
Housebuilders often have lists of conveyancers who are quick and who know the builder's contract and conveyancing practitioner. As many developers offer an incentive to use their approved conveyancer for this reason, any increased fees can be avoided and a builder will not put forward a conveyancing factory and run the risk of having the transaction delayed when they want exchange inside a month. A counter-argument for not opting for the suggested conveyancer is that they may prove unwilling to fight for your interests for fear of alienating the developer. If you worry that this may be the case you should remain with your high street Notting Hill lawyer.