Am I correct in assuming that the fact that my conveyancer in Lewisham is not listed on my lender's solicitor panel that there is a problem with the standard of his work?
That is most likely a wrong assumption to make. There are plenty of reasonable explanations. A recent report by the solicitors regulator revealed that over three quarters of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The most common reasons for removal are: (1) low volume of transactions (2) the lawyer is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. Where you are concerned you should contact the Lewisham conveyancing practice and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for your lender.
Can your site be used to find a Conveyancing solicitor in Lewisham even if I’m not purchasing or selling a house, for example where I want to acquire a shop in Lewisham with a loan from TSB?
The service is predominantly used to select residential conveyancing solicitors in Lewisham but we have set out towards the bottom of this page a few Lewisham commercial conveyancing firms. You will need to speak with the company directly to establish if they are also authorised to represent TSB
Me and my partner are buying a house in Lewisham. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a conveyancer? On completion day we will need to send money into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our monies?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
It is not clear whether my bank requires a lease extension. I have called into my local Lewisham bank branch on numerous occasions and was informed it wasn't an issue and they will lend. My Lewisham conveyancing solicitor - who is on the lender conveyancing panel- telephoned and was told they will not lend in accordance with their specific requirements. Who do I believe?
Provided that the lawyer is on the bank panel, they must comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook conditions for the lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the lender will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the mortgage company to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years remaining.
After months of negotiation I have agreed a price on a house in Lewisham. My financial adviser suggested a solicitor. I paid an on account payment of £175. A few days later, the lawyer contacted me to say that they were not on the TSB conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the TSB panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.
I have been on the look out for a flat up to £235,500 and identified one near me in Lewisham I like with a park and station in the vicinity, however it's only got 61 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Lewisham in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a short lease?
If you need a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the premises for at least 2 years you can ask them to start the process of the extension and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer about this matter.
Is it possible to transfer to a new solicitor as I have to choose one who is on the HSBC Bank conveyancing list. I instructed a high street conveyancing solicitor in Lewisham five minutes from me but the firm is not accepted by HSBC Bank
We will our best to assist in finding you a conveyancing solicitor in Lewisham on the HSBC Bank panel. Please note that the solicitors that we list do not pay us a referral fee if you instruct them and are under regulation of the SRA who oversee all conveyancing solicitors in Lewisham. In making use of the find a conveyancing solicitor tool on this page, you can compare charges for conveyancing solicitors in Lewisham and throughout England and Wales.