My partner and I are hoping to purchase a house in Snowdonia and have appointed a Snowdonia conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our solicitor has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Clydesdale have this evening contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Snowdonia conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?
If you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender. 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 Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Snowdonia solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
About to place a bid on a leasehold flat in Snowdonia. The estate agents assure me that it is the norm for flats in Snowdonia to have less than 75 years left on the lease. I am expecting a loan with Accord Mortgages. Will the property be mortgageable given that the lease has 72 years remaining.
Most leasehold conveyancing experts should be able to deal with a lease extension. if you are securing a mortgage then your lender may insist that the lease be extended before competition. Accord Mortgages have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook in relation to minimum unexpired lease terms. As of 21/7/2024 the requirements read as follows :
I am downsizing from our home in Snowdonia and according to the buyers it appears that there is a possibility that the property was constructed land that was not decontaminated. Any high street Snowdonia lawyer would know this is not the case. For the life of me I don't know why the buyers instructed a web based conveyancing outfit rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Snowdonia. We have lived in Snowdonia for 5 years we know of no issue. Is it a good idea to contact our local Authority to obtain confirmation that there is no issue.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing solicitor currently acting for you. 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)
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up during conveyancing in Snowdonia?
Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Snowdonia. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold element on a property I have offered on last month in what should have been a quick, no chain conveyancing. Snowdonia is where the house is located. Can you shed any light on this issue?
Flying freeholds in Snowdonia are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Snowdonia you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Snowdonia may decide 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.
Given that I will soon part with over three hundred thousand on a two bedroom apartment in Snowdonia I would like to have a conversation with the conveyancer regarding thehome move ahead of instructing the firm. Is this something that you can arrange?
We could not agree more - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you liaising with the lawyer due to be carrying out your conveyancing in Snowdonia.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is unique individual, not a file number. The solicitors that we put you in touch with believe that the fees you are quoted for your conveyancing in Snowdonia should be the figure that you are charged.