My husband and I are hoping to purchase a property in Glastonbury and have appointed a Glastonbury conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our conveyancer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. The Royal Bank of Scotland have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Glastonbury solicitor is not on their conveyancing panel. What do we do from here?
When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is conventional for the purchasers' lawyers 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 Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your mortgage company 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 don't have to instruct a firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Glastonbury solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
The Glastonbury conveyancing firm handling our Glastonbury conveyancing has identified a discrepancy between the assumptions in the home valuation survey and what is revealed within the legal papers for the property. My solicitor informs me that he must ensure that the lender is OK with this discrepancy and is still content to lend. Is my lawyer’s stance right?
Your solicitor must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements which do require that your lawyer disclose any incorrect assumptions in the lender’s valuation report and the legal papers. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for both parties.
Can your site be used to locate a Conveyancing solicitor in Glastonbury even where I’m not purchasing or disposing of a house, for instance if I intend to acquire a shop in Glastonbury with a mortgage from The Royal Bank of Scotland?
Our search tool is mainly there to locate domestic conveyancing solicitors in Glastonbury but we have set out towards the bottom of this page some Glastonbury commercial conveyancing firms. You should enquire with the solicitors directly to see if they are also authorised to represent The Royal Bank of Scotland
When looking at mumsnet.com for a conveyancing lawyer in Glastonbury, most post that I should look for a CQS kitemarked lawyer. Can you explain what CQS is?
Glastonbury Conveyancing Quality Scheme solicitors have achieved accreditation under the Law Society's Scheme (CQS) The Law Society created CQS to establish evidence of quality standards in the home moving process. CQS enables buyers and sellers to recognise practices that provide a quality residential conveyancing. Glastonbury is one of the many areas in England and Wales in which accredited firms have a presence. The conveyancing scheme obliges solicitors to undergo a strict assessment, compulsory training, self-reporting, spot checks and annual reviews in order to maintain CQS status. It is open only to members of the Law Society who meet the demanding standards set by the scheme and has the support of the Legal Ombudsman.
My husband and I may need to let out our Glastonbury 1st floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Glastonbury conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?
Notwithstanding that your previous Glastonbury conveyancing lawyer is not around you can review your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The rule is that if the lease is non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you need to obtain consent via your landlord or some other party before subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without prior consent. Such consent must not not be unreasonably withheld. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you will need to ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.
I bought a 2 bed flat in Glastonbury, conveyancing formalities finalised 7 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Similar properties in Glastonbury with over 90 years remaining are worth £195,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2088
You have 63 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to range between £16,200 and £18,600 plus professional fees.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.