My husband and I are planning to buy a home in Newent and are in fact using a Newent conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our property lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Barnsley Building Society have this morning contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Newent conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Is this a problem?
Where you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is standard for the purchasers' solicitors to also represent 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 Accreditation Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the bank's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Newent lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
I have 70 years unexpired on my lease and require a lease extension for my flat in Newent. Conveyancing solicitors on the Bank of Ireland panel can deal with such extensions correct?
Most leasehold conveyancing experts should be able to deal with a lease extension. if you are obtaining a mortgage then your lender may insist that the lease be extended before competition. Bank of Ireland have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook in relation to minimum unexpired lease terms. As of 23/2/2025 the requirements read as follows :
Last month we had a mortgage agreed in principle with Nottingham. Newent conveyancing solicitors were chosen. How long does it take for Nottingham to send the offer to the property lawyer?
There is no definitive answer here. Have Nottingham completed the valuation? Have you advised Nottingham as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Nottingham conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.
I'm at the point of looking at houses in Newent and I am about to put in an offer. Should I already have a lawyer appointed at this stage? I am planning to take a mortgage with Kent Reliance.
You should start requesting conveyancing quotes from solicitors ASAP. After you have chosen your lawyer and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and forward their details on to the EA. As you are seeking a mortgage with Kent Reliance, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.
The mortgage over my property is with TSB for my property in Newent. Conveyancing has been completed months 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 buy-to-let mortgage or inform TSB?
You must advise TSB prior to renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of TSB’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 TSB directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a TSB conveyancing panel firm.
How does conveyancing in Newent differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build residence in Newent approach us having been asked by the builder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the residence is completed. This is because developers in Newent tend to acquire 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 conveyancers 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 accustomed to new build conveyancing in Newent or who has acted in the same development.
I decided to have a survey completed on a house in Newent prior to appointing solicitors. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold element to the house. My surveyor has said that some lenders may not issue a loan on a flying freehold property.
It varies from the lender to lender. Santander has different requirements for example to Halifax. If you call us we can check with the appropriate lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Newent. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Newent to see if the conveyancing costs will increase in light of this.