My partner and I are planning to purchase a property in Walsall and are in fact using a Walsall conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our conveyancer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with a view to exchanging next week. The Mortgage Works have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Walsall lawyer is not on their conveyancing panel. Is this a problem?
If you are buying a property needing a mortgage it is conventional for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the mortgage company. 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 solicitor should contact your bank 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 lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Walsall solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
We are buying a 4 bedroom semi-detached house in Walsall. We would like to carry out a loft conversion at the house.Will legal investigations on the property involve investigations to determine if these works are permitted?
Your conveyancer will check the deeds as conveyancing in Walsall will on occasion reveal restrictions in the title documents which prevent categories of changes or need the consent of a 3rd party. Some works require local authority planning permissions and approval under the building regulations. Many areas are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which often prevent or impact extensions. You should check these things with a surveyor prior to committing yourself to a purchase.
I am expecting a OIP from Principality this week so we know how much we could potentially offer as otherwise we only have online calculators to go by (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do Principality recommend any Walsall solicitors on the Principality conveyancing panel, or is it better to find our own lawyer?
You will need to appoint Walsall solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Principality conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and Principality through the process.
The formalities of my purchase has taken place for my property in Walsall. Conveyancing was of an acceptable standard but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. How do I make a complaint?
Almost all lenders have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Team at head office. Ordinarily complaints to a lender are sorted out very quickly. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service who will take matters further.
A friend advised me that where I am buying in Walsall I should carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
This is a search is usually included in the estimate for your Walsall conveyancing searches. It is a large report of about 40 pages, listing and detailing important information about Walsall around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime statistics, Local Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information regarding Walsall.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a property I put an offer in two weeks back in what was supposed to be a straight forward, chain free conveyancing. Walsall is the location of the property. Can you shed any light on this issue?
Flying freeholds in Walsall are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Walsall you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Walsall 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 premises.
Is it possible to swap conveyancer as I have to appoint a firm on the Chelsea Building Society conveyancing panel. I was using a high street conveyancing solicitor in Walsall round the corner but he is not approved by Chelsea Building Society
It would be our pleasure to assist you select a conveyancing solicitor in Walsall on the Chelsea Building Society panel. Please note that the solicitors that we list do not pay us fee if you instruct them and are authorised and regulated by the SRA who regulate all conveyancing solicitors in Walsall. In utilising the find a conveyancing solicitor tool on this page, you can compare and instruct different solicitors and conveyancers both nationally and in Walsall.
What can I expect to pay for conveyancing in Walsall?
Almost all Walsall conveyancing firms will agree to a fixed fee. In the event that further work become due during the conveyancing your conveyancer is obliged inform you in writing of such further charges for any work immediately it becomes obvious. Some work on a no sale no fee principle, others will charge a fraction of the set charges, calculated based on the stage at which the matter aborts.
It is advisable to obtain various firms to send you an estimate.