I plan on buying a maisonette in Plymouth. My Conveyancer has never been on on the lender solicitor list. Is it possible for me to retain my Plymouth conveyancing solicitor notwithstanding that they are excluded from the mortgage company list of approved lawyers?
You will need to instruct a lawyer to complete the legal work required if you take out a loan to buy your home. They will carry out all the essential legal checks on the property, ensuring that you will be properly registered as the owner and ensure that all the necessary mortgage documentation is in order. You can instruct a Plymouth conveyancer of your choice. Nevertheless, where the property lawyer selected is not on the bank approved list supplemental charges will be levied as separate legal representation will be required by them. Lender panel applications may be submitted, so where your conveyancer has not in the past applied for membership they should take the chance to apply.
Is it the case that all Plymouth solicitors on the TSB conveyancing panel are governed by the SRA?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the TSB approved list of solicitors they would need to be overseen by the SRA. Some banks do permit licenced conveyancers on their panel and in that case the organisation would be regulated by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
I can not fathom if my mortgage offer requires a lease extension. I have called into my local Plymouth building society branch on various occasions and was informed it wasn't a problem and they would lend. My Plymouth conveyancing solicitor - who is on the lender conveyancing panel- telephoned and was told they will not lend based on their UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook minimum lease term requirements. I simply don't know who is right.
The lawyer must follow the CML Handbook Part 2 requirements for your bank. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the mortgage company will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the mortgage company to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years remaining.
My offer was accepted on a house in Plymouth on 12/8/2025, valuation was booked 3 days after, all came back fine. Solicitor appointed, so the only thing outstanding was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to Nottingham and chasing them on my offer, I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the Nottingham conveyancing panel. Are Nottingham entitled to hold back the Mortgage pending the lawyer being on the approved list?
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 Nottingham to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the Nottingham conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
2 months have gone by since my purchase conveyancing in Plymouth completed. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £200,000 when infact I paid £180,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the asset from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I have offered on a fortnight ago in what should have been a simple, no chain conveyancing. Plymouth is the location of the property. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in Plymouth are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Plymouth you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds very carefully. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Plymouth 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.
I have been advised by a few property agents in Plymouth to choose a conveyancer using your seach tool. Is there a financial advantage for Estate Agents to offer your lawyers over alternative conveyancing organisations?
We don’t make any referral fee for sending work our way. We thought it would be too underhand to pay a commission because members of the public would think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I receiving any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.
Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Plymouth from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?
- A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Plymouth can be reduced where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the buyers’ conveyancers. In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Plymouth leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord acquiescing to such changes. Where you fail to have the consents in place you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer in the first instance. You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your conveyancers. A buyer’s conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to where the remaining number of years is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale. Many landlords or managing agents in Plymouth charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Plymouth. If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic rather than unsettled.
Plymouth Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should ask Prior to buying
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What restrictions are there in the Plymouth Lease? Best to be warned if fixing the lift or some other major work is coming up to be shared amongst the leasehold owners and will dramatically increase the the maintenance fees or require a specific invoice. What is the name of the managing agents?