I am one month into the sale of my ground floor flat in Wilmslow and the estate agent has just text me to say that the purchasers are appointing a new solicitor. The reason given is that the bank will only work with property lawyers on their approved list. On what basis would a big named mortgage company only engage with specific law firms rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Wilmslow ?
Lenders have always had panels of law firms they are willing to work with, 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 represented them for more than 15 years.
Lenders blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that 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 unlikely to have any impact on this.
We are acquiring a new build flat in Wilmslow and my conveyancer is telling me that she is duty bound to the lender to reveal incentives from the developer. I am on a tight deadline to sign contracts and I don't want to prolong the conveyancing. is my lawyer playing by the book?
You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your lawyer. A precondition to being on a bank panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook provisions. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.
We see that you have a search directory identifying law firms on the Barclays conveyancing panel. Do companies pay you a referral fee if I retain them for our own conveyancing in Wilmslow?
We are a listing service only for law firms wishing to communicate if they are on the Barclays conveyancing panel or other lender panels. We do not charge referral fees to any conveyancer that you subsequently appoint for your conveyancing in Wilmslow.
I'm purchasing my first flat in Wilmslow with a mortgage from Nationwide Building Society. The sellers refused to budge the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of fixtures and fittings instead. The sale representative advised me not to tell my conveyancer about this extras as it will jeopardize my mortgage with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
Given that I will soon spend £400,000 on a garden flat in Wilmslow I would like to have a conversation with the conveyancer concerning thehouse move in advance of giving the go ahead to the firm. Can this be arranged?
Absolutely - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you liaising with the lawyer due to be doing your conveyancing in Wilmslow.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is an important person, not a case number. The solicitors that we put you in touch with believe that the figure you are quoted for residential conveyancing in Wilmslow should be the amount on the final invoice that you end up paying.
Should I choose a Wilmslow conveyancing solicitor in close proximity to the house I am buying? I have an old university friend who can deal with the legal formalities but they are based approximately 350kilometers drive away.
The benefit of a local Wilmslow conveyancing firm is that you can visit the firm to execute paperwork, hand in your ID and apply pressure on them if necessary. Having local Wilmslow know how is a bonus. That being said nothing is more important than finding someone that will do a good and efficient job. If if people you trust used your friend and on the whole were impressed that must outweigh using an unknown Wilmslow conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being round the corner.