I am the registered owner of a freehold premises in Whitley Bay yet charged rent, why is this and what is this?

It’s unusual for properties in Whitley Bay and has limited impact for conveyancing in Whitley Bay but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.

Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges date back many centuries, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the generation of fresh rentcharges from 1977 onwards.

Previous rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence in 2037 will be extinguished.

Please explain the implications if my lawyer’s firm is expelled from the Nationwide Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Whitley Bay?

First, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit for a fee.

When it comes to lenders such as Coventry BS, do Whitley Bay conveyancing practitioners incur a fee to be on the list of approved solicitors?

We are unaware of any mortgage company fees to register on their list of approved firms, although some do charge an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel submission.

I have paid off my mortgage with Santander. I assume I don't need a Whitley Bay lawyer on the Santander panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.

If you have finished paying off your Santander mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Santander mortgage from the register. Santander, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:

1. but are not moving to another property
2. where Santander has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
3. Santander has instructed the Land Registry to do so

Completion of my purchase has taken place for my property in Whitley Bay. Conveyancing was of an acceptable standard but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. How does one go about formally complaining?

Almost all banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Services Team at head office. Ordinarily complaints to a lender are sorted out effectively and efficiently. If you feel the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service who will take matters further.

I have recentlydiscovered that Action Conveyancing have closed. They carried out my conveyancing in Whitley Bay for a purchase of a leasehold flat 10 months ago. How can I establish that my home is not still registered in the name of the former proprietor?

The quickest method to check if the property is registered to you, you can make a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Whitley Bay conveyancing specialists.

It's been quite a while since I've bought a house. Searching on the web suggests that the fees vary significantly. Is it possible for you to recommend a good Whitley Bay conveyancer that would help me as well as represent Barclays?

The purpose of this site is restricted to being a directory service for property lawyers who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Barclays in certain locations such as Whitley Bay . We dont recommend any specific conveyancer.