At long last a loan agreement from NatWest for the remortgage of my single room garden flat is coming any day now. Are you able to propose a cheap conveyancing law firm in Harold Wood?

You have arrived at the wrong place to search for a cheap conveyancing solicitors in Harold Wood. Our intention is to offer cost effective conveyancing but we do not work with the cheapest lawyers. Do not be swayed by brokers offering £100 conveyancing in Harold Wood. The optimum result, in being led by low cost conveyancing, you will get your money’s worth and at worst you will end up paying a lot in additional fees and still not end up with the service you were looking for.

My fiance and I are refinancing our apartment in Harold Wood with Yorkshire BS. We have a son 19 who lives at home. Our solicitor requested us to identify any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the apartment is forfeited by the lender. I have a couple of questions (1) Is this form unique to the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we remortgaged 4 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?

First, rest assured that your Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Yorkshire BS. This is solely used to protect Yorkshire BS if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Yorkshire BS had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.

As someone not used to the Harold Wood conveyancing process what is your top tip you can give me for the legal transfer of property in Harold Wood

You may not hear this from too many lawyers but conveyancing in Harold Wood and elsewhere in Essex is often a confrontational experience. Put another way, when it comes to conveyancing there is plenty of opportunity for confrontation between you and others involved in the legal transfer of property. For instance, the seller, property agent and on occasion a mortgage company. Appointing a law firm for your conveyancing in Harold Wood should not be taken lightly as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the ONLY person in the transaction whose role it is to protect your legal interests and to keep you safe.

Sometimes a third party with a vested interest will attempt to persuade you that it is in your interests to do things their way. For instance, the property agent may claim to be assisting by claiming that your conveyancer is slow. Or your mortgage broker may tell you to do take action that is contrary to your lawyers recommendation. You should always trust your lawyer above all other parties when it comes to the legal transfer of property.

I am helping my step-mother sell her property in Harold Wood. Does the conveyancer order an EPC or do I organise this?

After the abolition of HIPs, energy assessments was retained a compulsory part of moving property. An energy assessment should be commissioned in advance of the property being marketed. It is not something that law firms ordinarily arrange. Where you are instructing a Harold Wood conveyancing solicitor they may help arrange energy performance certificates given their relationships with long established Harold Wood energy assessors

I have paid off my mortgage with UBS. I assume I don't need a Harold Wood property lawyer on the UBS panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.

If you have finished paying off your UBS 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 UBS mortgage from the register. UBS, 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:

1. but are not moving to another property
2. where UBS has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
3. UBS has instructed the Land Registry to do so

My sealed bid on a property in Harold Wood has been accepted, but there is a chain. The vendors have offered on somewhere, however it’s not been accepted yet, and are looking at other apartments in the pipeline. I have chosen a nearby conveyancing solicitor in Harold Wood. What should be my next step? At what stage should I apply for the mortgage with Nationwide?

It is understandable to have anxieties where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket prematurely (mortgage application is approx one thousand pounds, then valuation, Harold Wood conveyancing search costs, etc). The first thing to do is check that your solicitor is on the Nationwide approved list. As to the subsequent stages this very much dictated by the specifics of your transaction, motivation for this property and on the state of the market. During a buoyant market many purchasers will apply for the mortgage with Nationwide and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they ask their property lawyer to move forward with searches.

I have been sourcing a conveyancing lawyer in Harold Wood for my house move. Is it possible to see a solicitor's complaints history with the profession’s regulator?

Members of the public can review presented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) determinations stemming from investigations commenced on or after Jan 2008. Go to Check a solicitor's record. To find details Pre 2008, or to check a solicitors record, phone 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and 09.30 - 18.00 Tuesday. International callers, call +44 (0)121 329 6800. The SRA may monitor telephone calls for training requirements.