My fiance and I are looking to acquire a flat in Sherborne and are in fact using a Sherborne conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with a view to exchanging next week. Alliance & Leicester have this afternoon contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Sherborne conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?
If you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Sherborne solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
We are expecting a mortgage offer soon. The bank mentioned the home loan came with free conveyancing. Is the implication that I have to use their panel solicitor as I would much rather appoint a high street conveyancing solicitor in Sherborne?
Do check but the the likelihood is that give you one of their panel conveyancers should you want the "fee-free" offer. Call the bank and see if they allow a cash alternative. It is not unheard for a lender to give a £250 cashback as an alternative in which case you could put that amount towards the cost for your conveyancing solicitor near Sherborne.
My wife and I are purchasing a flat in Sherborne. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a lawyer? At some point we will need to put our life savings into their account. What protection do we have from them run away with our money?
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.
I am planning to move house in April. Will my conveyancing solicitor communicate with the removal company on the completion day. As an aside, can you suggest a removal company in Sherborne. Conveyancing solicitor was organised prior to coming across this website.
On the day of completion you will need to collect the keys from your selling agent but this should only occur after the vendors conveyancers advise the agent that the monies to complete are in and the keys can be passed over. After that you can tell the removal company that they can start moving you in. As a matter of policy we do not recommend a specific removal company but can help you locate a residential property solicitor in Sherborne or a firm that specialises in conveyancing in Sherborne.
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 into my local Sherborne building society branch on various occasions and was told it wasn't a problem and they will lend. My Sherborne conveyancing solicitor - who is on the bank conveyancing panel- telephoned to say that they will not lend based on their published requirements. I have no idea who is right.
As long as the lawyer is on the mortgage company panel, they must follow the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook conditions for the lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the bank 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.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up as part of conveyancing in Sherborne?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Sherborne. 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…’
How does conveyancing in Sherborne differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build property in Sherborne come to us having been asked by the developer to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is ready to move into. This is because builders in Sherborne usually purchase the site, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Sherborne or who has acted in the same development.