I am one month into the sale of my ground floor flat in West Ham and the estate agent has just e-mailed to warn that the buyers are switching law firm. The reason given is that the lender will only work with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. Why would a major lender only work with specific law firms rather the firm that they want to select to handle their conveyancing in West Ham ?
UK lenders have always had panels of law firms that can act for them, but in the last few years big names such as Lloyds Banking Group, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for many years.
Banks justify this action to a rise in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to keep an eye on. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your buyers are not going to have any sway in the decision.
we are a couple who are hoping to buy a 3 bedroom apartment in West Ham with a homeloan from Accord Mortgages Ltd.We like our West Ham conveyancing practitioner but Accord Mortgages Ltd says her practice is not on their "panel". we are left little option but to use a Accord Mortgages Ltd panel lawyer or retain our high street solicitor and fork out for one of their panel ones to represent them. This seems very unfair; is there anything we can do?
Unfortunately,no. The home loan issued to you contains terms and conditions, a common one being that solicitors must be on the Accord Mortgages Ltd approved list. in the past, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could find one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your solicitors to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Accord Mortgages Ltd
I was told two weeks ago that my mortgage has been agreed to by Leeds Building Society. Is it usual for Leeds Building Society to only issue the offer once my solicitor in West Ham is approved on their conveyancing panel? Leeds Building Society have asked my solicitor to see a copy of their Professional Indemnity Insurance Schedule.
A lender would not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Leeds Building Society to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
After shopping around on the internet I have found a West Ham lawyer having checked that they are on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
Kent Reliance will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Kent Reliance will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own West Ham surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
Our offer on a property in West Ham has been agreed to, but there is a chain. The owners have offered on somewhere, but it’s not yet tied up, and have viewings of other apartments booked. I have chosen a local conveyancing solicitor in West Ham. What do I do now? At what point do I apply for the mortgage with Co-operative?
It is normal to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket prematurely (mortgage application is in the region of one thousand pounds, then valuation, West Ham conveyancing search fees, etc). The first thing to do is ensure that your conveyancer is on the Co-operative conveyancing panel. Concerning the subsequent steps this very much dictated by the specifics of your case, motivation for this property and on the state of the market. In a rising market the majority of home buyers will apply for the mortgage with Co-operative and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they pay their conveyancing practitioner to proceed with searches.
Various online forums that I have frequented warn that are a common cause of obstruction in West Ham house deals. Is this right?
The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) published conclusions of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not figure amongst the top 10 causes of delays in the conveyancing process. Searches are not likely to feature in any holding up conveyancing in West Ham.
As co-executor for the estate of my aunt I am disposing of a residence in Newport but I am based in West Ham. My lawyer (approximately 260 miles from mehas requested that I execute a statutory declaration prior to completion. Can you recommend a conveyancing practitioner in West Ham to witness this legal document for me?
strictly speaking you are unlikely to be required to have the documents witnessed by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily any notary public or qualified solicitor will be fine regardless of whether they are based in West Ham
Planning to complete next month on a ground floor flat in West Ham. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they are sending me a report within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?
The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in West Ham should include some of the following:
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Whether your lease provides for a reserve account for major works? You would want to be sent a copy of the lease Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property? An explanation concerning the obligations as set out in the lease to pay service charges - in relation to the building, and the more general rights a tenant enjoys
After months of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in West Ham. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?
Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a West Ham conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a West Ham flat is 46 Credon Road in January 2014. On 11 September 2013 Deputy District Judge Price sitting at the Bow County Court made a vesting order that the freeholder surrender his lease and be granted a new lease of the Premises on such terms as may be determined by the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber).The appropriate sum as concluded by the Tribunal was £7225 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 69.77 years.