My wife and I have lately purchased a house in Raglan. We have noticed several issues with the property which we suspect were omitted in the conveyancing searches. Is there anything we can do? What searches should? have been conducted as part of conveyancing in Raglan?
It is not clear from the question as what problems have arisen and if they are specific to conveyancing in Raglan. Conveyancing searches and investigations initiated as part of the legal transfer of property are designed to help avoid problems. As part of the legal transfer of property, a property owner completes a document called a SPIF. If the information is inaccurate, you may have a misrepresentation claim against the owner for any losses that you have suffered. The survey should have identified any problems with the structure of the property. Assuming a detailed survey was carried out and the issues were not identified, you may have a claim against the surveyor. However, if you did not have a full survey, you may be responsible for fixing any defects that have now been noted. We would always encourage buyers to take every possible step to ensure they are completely aware of the condition of a property before purchase regardless of whether they are buying in Raglan.
If you had a top tip for choosing a conveyancing solicitor in Raglan what would it be?
It would be unwise to be seduced by the lowest Raglan conveyancing fees. You really do get what you’re paying for when it comes to conveyancing solicitors. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you go into the conveyancing with your eyes wide open.
We had selected conveyancing lawyers located in Raglan on the Yorkshire BS solicitor approved list. They are now charging me a separate charge for handling the Yorkshire BS mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by Yorkshire BS?
As unfair as it may appear, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your conveyancer can charge a fee for this. The fee is not dictated by Yorkshire BS but by your Raglan conveyancing practitioner. Numerous firms on the Yorkshire BS panel will levy an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.
After shopping around on the internet I have found a Raglan property lawyer having checked that they are on the Barclays conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
Barclays will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Barclays will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Raglan surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
My colleague suggested that where I am buying in Raglan I should ask my conveyancer to execute a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?
This is a search is occasionally included in the estimate for your Raglan conveyancing searches. It is not a small report of more than thirty pages, listing and detailing important information about Raglan around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime details, Raglan Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information regarding Raglan.
The deeds to my property are lost. The lawyers who handled the conveyancing in Raglan 5 years ago are no longer around. What are my next steps?
As long as you have a registered title the information relating to your ownership will be evidenced by HMLR under a Title Number. It is easy to conduct a search at the Land Registry, find your property and secure up to date copies of the Registered Entries for a small fee. If the property is Leasehold then the Land Registry will in most cases hold a file duplicate of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be retrieved for a small fee.
In surfing the internet for the words conveyancing in Raglan it brings up numerous solicitorsin the vicinity. How do I determine which is the suitable conveyancing solicitor for me?
The ideal method of finding a suitable conveyancer is via trusted referral, so ask colleagues and those you trust who have bought a property in Raglan or the reputable estate agent or mortgage broker. Charges for conveyancing in Raglan vary, so it's advisable to obtain a minimum of three fee calculations from varying types of companies. Make sure that you know what costs in the quote includes.