I am five weeks into the sale of my home in St Werburghs and the estate agent has just text me to warn that the buyers are appointing a new conveyancer. I am told that this is due to the fact that the lender will only work with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a big named lender only deal with certain law firms rather the firm that they want to choose for their conveyancing in St Werburghs ?
UK lenders have always had panels of law firms that can act for them, but in the last few years big names such as Yorkshire Building Society, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for more than 15 years.
Mortgage companies point to the increase in fraud as the reason for the reduction – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. Banks tend not to disclose how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Some are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The buyers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.
is it true that all St Werburghs solicitor practices on the Barclays conveyancing panel are governed by the SRA?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the Barclays approved list of solicitors they would need to be overseen by the SRA. Many lenders do allow licenced conveyancers on their panel and in that case the firms would be governed by the CLC.
I'm in the process of looking at flats in St Werburghs and I am about to put in an offer. Is it premature to have a solicitor in place? I will be getting a mortgage with Lloyds.
You should start obtaining conveyancing estimates from solicitors ASAP. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their details on to the selling agent. Given that you are obtaining a mortgage with Lloyds, make sure you remember to check that your lawyer is on the Lloyds conveyancing panel.
RBS have agreed my mortgage in principle, my offer on a flat in St Werburghs has been accepted, now what?
The estate agent will want to be advised as to your solicitor's details (make sure the solicitors are on the lender’s panel). Call up RBS or your broker and finalise any relevant forms. RBS will sellect a valuer who will get in touch with the estate agent or seller to schedule a slot for the valuation to occur. Once conducted (assuming no problems) it takes on average a week for the mortgage offer to be issued. RBS will issue the offer to you and your conveyancing practitioners. The transaction will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing in St Werburghs.
It has been five months following my purchase conveyancing in St Werburghs concluded. I have checked the Land Registry website which shows that I paid £150,000 when infact I paid £180,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the asset from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
How does conveyancing in St Werburghs differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build premises in St Werburghs contact us having been asked by the developer to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is constructed. This is because house builders in St Werburghs usually purchase the land, 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 property lawyers 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 St Werburghs or who has acted in the same development.
My uncle has urged me to instruct his lawyers for conveyancing in St Werburghs. Do I follow his recommendation?
Much as we are happy to recommend a St Werburghs conveyancing lawyer the best way to find a conveyancing solicitor is to seek guidance from friends or relatives who have experience in using the conveyancer that you are are thinking of instructing.