My mortgage broker has asked me for my West Barnes law firm’s panel member for the Nat West conveyancing panel. Can you suggest how I find this out. I have called my local West Barnes office but they have not got back to me yet.

Have you tried contacting your West Barnes conveyancing practitioner about this?. They should have a central record lender panel numbers.

What does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in West Barnes? Why is this being asked of me?

To satisfy the Money Laundering Regulations any West Barnes conveyancing firm will require proof of identity in all conveyancing matters. This is normally satisfied by provision of a passport and an original bank statement or utility account showing your correct address.

Under Money Laundering Regulations, property lawyers are required to ascertain not simply the ID of conveyancing clients but also the origin of monies that they receive in respect of any matter. An unwillingness to disclose this will lead to your solicitor ending their retainer with you, as clearly this will cause a conflict between the set Regulations and a refusal to disclose.

Your conveyancers are duty bound to inform the appropriate authorities should they consider that any amounts received by them may contravene the Money Laundering Regulations.

Just bought a terraced house in West Barnes , how long should it take for the Land Registry to deal with the formalities evidencing my ownership? My West Barnes conveyancing solicitor has been painfully slow, so I want to be sure the registration is concluded.

There is nothing unique when it comes to conveyancing in West Barnes registration formalities. Rather than based on location, timeframes can differ depending on who lodges the application, whether there are errors and if the Land registry must send notices to any interested persons or bodies. As of today roughly 80% of submission are fully dealt with in less than three weeks but some can be subject to extensive delays. Historically registration occurs after the purchaser is living at the premises therefore registration formalities is not always primary concern yet if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your solicitor should contact the land registry and explain the circumstances.

Over the last few months I have been searching for a flat up to £245,000 and identified one near me in West Barnes I like with amenity areas and transport links in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 52 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in West Barnes for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a short lease?

Should you require a home loan the shortness of the lease will likely be an issue. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for at least 2 years you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer about this.

My husband and I are acquiring a studio flat in West Barnes. At the time of instructing our conveyancing practitioner, we were told they were on all major UK bank panels. Our mortgage broker called yesterday to advise that they are not on the RBS approved list. Were it to be true, what should we do? Should we simply choose a different solicitor that is on their panel or do we pay for dual representation, with RBS appointing their own approved conveyancer.

If you are purchasing a property requiring a mortgage it is standard for the purchaser’s solicitors to also represent the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a lawyer has to be on that lender's list of approved lawyers. An application has to be made by the property lawyer to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the property lawyer has to fulfill. Some mortgage companies now insist their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your conveyancing practitioner should contact RBS to discover 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 RBS's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own West Barnes solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.