Me and my partner are buying a 2 bedroom apartment in Claverley with a mortgage. We like our Claverley conveyancer, however the bank advise he's not on their "panel". It seems we have no choice but to instruct one of the mortgage company panel conveyancing practices or retain our Claverley property lawyer and pay for one of their panel firms to represent them. This feels very unfair; is there anything we can do?
No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose 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 Claverley conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
I am helping my mother sell her property in Claverley. Will the solicitor commission an EPC or should I organise this?
After the abolition of Home Information Packs, energy assessments was retained a compulsory part of moving property. An energy assessment must be commissioned before the property is marketed. This is not a task that lawyers normally organise. Where you are instructing a Claverley conveyancing practitioner they may be able to arrange energy assessments given their relationships with long established Claverley providers
I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Clydesdale. I assume I don't need a Claverley solicitor on the Clydesdale panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.
If you have finished paying off your Clydesdale mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Clydesdale mortgage from the register. Clydesdale, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Clydesdale has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Clydesdale has instructed the Land Registry to do so
Planning on purchasing a flat in Claverley. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Lender if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Nationwide conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Claverley property lawyer is on the Nationwide conveyancing panel.
A relative recommended that if I am buying in Claverley I should ask my conveyancer to perform a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?
A search of this type is occasionally included in the estimate for your Claverley conveyancing searches. It is a large report of more than thirty pages, listing and detailing significant information about Claverley around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Claverley Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime statistics, Claverley Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information about Claverley.
My wife and I own a semi-detached Georgian property in Claverley. Conveyancing solicitor represented me and TSB. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw a couple of entries: one for freehold, the second leasehold under the matching property. Is it worth asking TSB to clarify?
You should review the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Claverley and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they remortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with buyers. You can also question the position with the conveyancing solicitor who carried out the work.
When it comes to my conveyancing in Claverley should I be charged VAT on the following: (1) Land reg fee on purchase (2) Pre - completion search fee (3) SDLT E submission on purchase (4) Bank TT fee
(1) Land reg fee on purchase - No (2) Pre - completion search fees -No, (such conveyancing searches are HMLR ones and means £4 and possibly £2 bankruptcy per name on your mortgage) (3) SDLT E submission on your purchase - There is no VAT on Stamp Duty. However if the firm is charging a stamp duty e-submission fee as part of their services - some Claverley conveyancers do - that will incur VAT(4) Bank transfer fee - Yes it is for the lawyer's time in submitting the funds this way.