Me and my wife are acquiring a maisonette in New Forest. My lawyer has never been on on the bank approved panel. Am I still permitted to continue with my New Forest conveyancing solicitor even though they are excluded from the mortgage company list of approved lawyers?
You will need to have a conveyancing practitioner to deal with the formalities if you require a loan to buy your property. The lawyer will conduct all the essential due diligence on the property, make sure that you’re registered as proprietor and ensure that all the necessary mortgage paperwork is dealt with. One may select a New Forest solicitor of your choice. However, if the lawyer selected is not on the mortgage company approved list further charges will arise as separate legal representation will be required by them. Bank panel applications may be submitted, so if your lawyer has not in the past sought membership they should take the opportunity to apply.
The New Forest conveyancing firm that just started acting on my house acquisition in New Forest have suddenly shut down. They were on acting for me because I needed a solicitor on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel and my previous New Forest lawyer was not. I paid them 275 plus VAT in advance. What are my options?
If you have an estate agent involved then inform them straight away so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Most sellers would be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers should be in a position to help.
I am helping my niece sell her property in New Forest. Will the conveyancing solicitor commission the energy performance certificate or it is for the owner to coordinate?
After the demise of Home Packs, EPC’s became a compulsory element of selling a property. An energy performance certificate should be commissioned before the property is put on the market. It is not as aspect of the sale process that solicitors ordinarily organise. Where you are instructing a New Forest conveyancing lawyer they may be able to arrange energy assessments given their contacts with reputable local assessors
Is it correct that all New Forest CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors are on the Virgin Money conveyancing list of approved firms?
It is true that some banks and building societies now utilise the accreditation scheme as the starting point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. CQS accreditation however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitor practices wishing to remain on their panels.
It is not clear whether my lender obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have called my New Forest bank branch on various occasions and was told it does not impact the mortgage offer and they will lend. My New Forest conveyancing solicitor - who is on the bank conveyancing panel- called and was told they refuse to lend based on their UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook minimum lease term requirements. Who do I believe?
The conveyancing practitioner must comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook Part 2 requirements for your bank. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the mortgage company 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 left on the lease.
What does a local search inform me about the house I am buying in New Forest?
New Forest conveyancing often starts with the applying for local authority searches directly from your local Authority or via a personal search organisations for instance Searches UK The local search is essential in every New Forest conveyancing purchase; that is if you wish to avoid any nasty once you have moved into your property. The search will provide information on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the premises (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of thirteen topic sections.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified during conveyancing in New Forest?
Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in New Forest. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’