We went with a high street solicitor for my conveyancing in South West London last week. Going through the Ts and Cs it is apparent thatI am responsible for charges even where the transaction does not complete. Should I ditch them and use an on-line lawyer who offer no-sale-no-fee conveyancing in South West London?
It is usually ‘give and take’ in that if "No Sale No Fee" is advertised then the fee levels will tend to be be more expensive to neutralise the cases that fail to complete. Also remember that such offerings rarely protect you from expenditure such your South West London conveyancing search charges.
Can your site be used to recommend a Conveyancing solicitor in South West London even where I’m not purchasing or selling a house, for instance if I want to buy a shop in South West London with a mortgage from Birmingham Midshires?
Our comparison service is primarily there to get a quote from residential conveyancing solicitors in South West London but we have listed at the end of this page a selection of South West London commercial conveyancing firms. You should make contact with the solicitors directly to check if they are also authorised to represent Birmingham Midshires
The South West London conveyancing solicitors that I recently instructed on my purchase in South West London have suddenly shut down. They were on acting for me because I needed a firm on the Santander conveyancing panel and my previous South West London lawyer was not. I paid them £170 on account. What should be my next steps?
Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then let them know immediately so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to the problems encountered. Most sellers would be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Santander conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers may be able to help.
Is it correct that all South West London CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors are on the Barclays conveyancing list of approved firms?
It is true that some lenders now use the accreditation scheme as the starting point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS accreditation however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. Nevertheless,the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitor practices wishing to join their approved list of conveyancing solicitors.
We have agreed to purchase a house in South West London. A rare aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. HSBC have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?
Given that your lender is HSBC your lawyer must follow the conveyancing requirements outlined in Section two of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for HSBC. The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook stipulates minimum specifications for solar panel roof-space leases, and lawyers are required to report to HSBC where a lease does not comply with these conditions. The requirements relate to the installation of panels on properties nationwide and is not limited to South West London.
It is unclear whether my mortgage offer requires a lease extension. I have called my South West London bank branch on numerous occasions and was told they are content with the situation and they will lend. My South West London conveyancing solicitor - who is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel- called and was told they will not lend in accordance with their UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook minimum lease term requirements. I have no idea who is right.
The property lawyer must comply with the CML Handbook Part 2 specifications for your lender. 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 bank to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
I purchased a 4 bedroom Victorian house in South West London. Conveyancing solicitor represented me and Halifax. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and there are two entries: the first freehold, the second leasehold with the exact same address. Is it worth asking Halifax to clarify?
You need to read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in South West London and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they buy they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with lenders. You can also question the situation with your conveyancing practitioner who conducted the work.
Due to the advice of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in South West London ahead of retaining solicitors. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold overhang to the house. The surveyor advised that some banks will refuse to give a loan on this type of home.
It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different requirements for example to Nationwide. Should you wish to telephone us we can look into this further via the relevant bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in South West London. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in South West London to see if the conveyancing costs will increase in light of this.