My wife and I are purchasing a new build flat in Woburn and my solicitor is telling me that she has to the lender to reveal incentives from the builder. I am nearing the developer’s deadline to exchange and I have no desire to prolong the conveyancing. is my lawyer playing by the book?

You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your property lawyer. A precondition to being on a lender panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.

Will my conveyancing lawyers need to check that the building insurance when buying a house in Woburn. My lender is Platform

Platform have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook. As of 13/10/2024, the requirements read as follows :

I am helping my sister sell her flat in Woburn. Will the conveyancing solicitor arrange an energy assessment or should I organise this?

After the abolition of Home Information Packs, energy performance certificates became a compulsory element of selling a house. An energy performance certificate must be to hand before the property is advertised. It is not something that solicitors normally arrange. If you are instructing a Woburn conveyancing solicitor they may be able to arrange EPC’s due to their relationships with long established Woburn accredited person

We have a mortgage agreed in principle with Principality. Woburn conveyancing lawyers are appointed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from Principality?

There is no definitive answer here. Have Principality done the valuation? Have you informed Principality as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Principality conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.

I currently have a mortgage with Santander for my property in Woburn. Conveyancing has been completed some time ago. If I am intending to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Santander?

You must advise Santander prior to renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of Santander’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Santander directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Santander conveyancing panel lawyer.

Should commercial conveyancing searches reveal impending roadworks that could affect a commercial land in Woburn?

Its becoming the norm that commercial conveyancing solicitors in Woburn will conduct a SiteSolutions Highways report as it dramatically cuts the time that conveyancers spend in researching accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Woburn. The report sets out definitive information on the adoption status of roads, footpaths and verges, as well as the implication of traffic schemes and the rights of way surrounding a commercial development sites in Woburn.

For each commercial conveyancing transaction in Woburn it is crucial to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. Failure to identify developments where adoption procedures have not been dealt with adequately can result in delays to Woburn commercial conveyancing deals as well as present a risk to future plans for the site. These searches are not carried out for domestic conveyancing in Woburn.

How do I use the search app to find a conveyancing lawyer in Woburn on the approved list for my bank?

First choose a bank such as Halifax, Virgin Money or Nottingham Building Society then choose your preferred area e.g. Woburn. Conveyancing organisations in Woburn and further afield should be identified.