My partner and I are planning to acquire a flat in Shoreditch and are in fact using a Shoreditch conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our property lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Aldermore have this evening contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Shoreditch conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is conventional for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the mortgage company. 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 Quality Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your lender 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 lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Shoreditch lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
I am considering refinancing my apartment in Shoreditch, does my lawyer have to be on the UBS Conveyancing panel?
There is nothing to stop you using your solicitor, but UBS will insist on their interests being represented by a firm on their conveyancing panel. There is much more potential for delays and confusion with an additional lawyer added to the mix, and it will undoubtedly be more expensive too.
I acquired my home on 6 July and the transaction details is yet to be registered. Should I be concerned? My conveyancing solicitor in Shoreditch said it will be recorded inside ten days. Are transfers in Shoreditch particularly slow to register?
There is nothing unique when it comes to conveyancing in Shoreditch registration formalities. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timeframes can vary subject to the party submitting the application, whether it is in order and whether the Land registry need to notify any third parties. Currently in the region of three quarters of such applications are completed in less than three weeks but some can be subject to extensive hold-ups. Historically registration occurs after the buyer is living at the premises so an expedited registration is not always primary concern but where there is a degree of urgency associated with the registration then you or your conveyancer can communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for the application to be prioritised.
How does conveyancing in Shoreditch differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build premises in Shoreditch contact us having been asked by the builder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the property is ready to move into. This is because developers in Shoreditch tend to buy the real estate, 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 conveyancing solicitors 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 Shoreditch or who has acted in the same development.
As co-executor for the estate of my aunt I am disposing of a residence in Neath but live in Shoreditch. My conveyancer (who is 235 miles from meneeds me to execute a statutory declaration before the transaction finalising. Could you suggest a conveyancing solicitor in Shoreditch to witness this legal document for me?
strictly speaking you are unlikely to be required to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily any notary public or qualified solicitor will do regardless of whether they are Shoreditch based