My wife and I are planning to buy a house in Bexley and have appointed a Bexley conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Barnsley Building Society have this morning contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Bexley conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?
When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is conventional for the purchasers' lawyers 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 Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Bexley solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
When it comes to lenders such as Aldermore, do Bexley lawyers have to pay an annual charge to be on the conveyancing panel?
We are not aware of any bank fees to register on their panel, although some do levy an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel submission.
We had selected solicitors located in Bexley on the Bank of Ireland solicitor approved list. They are now charging me a separate fee for handling the Bank of Ireland mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by Bank of Ireland?
Provided it is contained in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your property lawyer can levy a fee for this. The fee is not set by Bank of Ireland but by your Bexley property lawyer. Plenty of firms on the Bank of Ireland panel will quote ’dealing with mortgage’ fee and others do not.
Can I be sure that the Bexley conveyancing solicitor on the Coventry BS panel is any good?
When it comes to conveyancing in Bexley obtaining recommendations is a sensible starting point. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one advertising the lowest fees. We would always advise that you speak with the lawyer carrying out your conveyancing.
Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my house are lost. The lawyers who conducted the conveyancing in Bexley 5 years ago no longer exist. What do I do?
Gone are the days when you need to have the physical deeds to prove you are the registered proprietor of land or premises, as the Land Registry have everything they need in a digital format.
I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold element on a house I have offered on a fortnight ago in what should have been a straight forward, no chain conveyancing. Bexley is where the house is located. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in Bexley are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Bexley you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds thoroughly. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Bexley 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 property.
Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed apartment in Bexley. Conveyancing has not commenced, but I have just had a quarterly service charge invoice – Do I pay up?
The sensible thing to do is clear the service charge as normal as all ground rent and maintenance charges will be apportioned as part of the financial calculations for completion monies, so you will be reimbursed by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.
I am the proprietor of a garden flat in Bexley. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the premium due for the purchase of the freehold?
Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a Bexley conveyancing firm who can help.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a Bexley residence is 103a Footscray Road in January 2014. The tribunal determines that the premium payable for the extended lease should be £34,500 according to the expert witness valuation calculation This case affected 1 flat.