Me and my fiance are intending to acquire a 2 bedroom apartment in Oakleigh Park with a mortgage. We wish to retain our Oakleigh Park solicitor, but the bank advise he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the lender panel firms or retain our Oakleigh Park solicitor as well as pay for one of their panel ones to represent them. We regard this is inequitable; is there anything we can do?
No, not really. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your Oakleigh Park conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
I am hoping to complete my purchase in Oakleigh Park next Tuesday. My solicitor now wants me to supply her with proof of content and building insurance for the property as he says that he has to check this in his capacity as lawyer for the bank. What does the insurance need to cover?
All property lawyers on acting for mortgage companies would need to check that the following risks are covered fire; lightning; aircraft; explosion; earthquake; storm; flood; escape of water or oil; riot; malicious damage; theft or attempted theft; falling trees and branches and aerials; subsidence; heave;landslip;collision;accidental damage to underground services;professional fees, demolition and site clearance costs; and public liability to anyone else. There are some other issues such as the level of excess that are set out in a lender’s UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook instructions. These obligations are not limited to conveyancing in Oakleigh Park.
Having sold my house in Oakleigh Park last May but the buyer keeps telephoning me complaining that her lawyer is waiting to hear from myconveyancer. What are the post completion sale legalities now that I have sold?
Following your house sale your lawyer is duty bound to forward the transfer documentation and all additional paperwork to the purchaser's conveyancer. If applicable, your lawyer should also send confirmation that the legal charge in favour of the lender has been repaid to the buyers conveyancers. There are no post completion steps specific conveyancing in Oakleigh Park.
A colleague pointed out to me me that in purchasing a property in Oakleigh Park there may be a number of restrictions prohibiting external alterations to a property. Is this right?
We are aware of a number of properties in Oakleigh Park which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to execute external changes. Part of the conveyancing in Oakleigh Park should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.
We had chosen conveyancers located in Oakleigh Park on the Barclays solicitor approved list. They are now charging me a further amount for the legal aspects of the Barclays mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by Barclays?
Unfortunately, as long as it is in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your conveyancer is entitled to charge a fee for this. The charge is not set by Barclays but by your Oakleigh Park lawyer. Some firms on the Barclays panel will levy an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.
My sealed bid on a house in Oakleigh Park has been accepted, but there is a chain. The sellers have offered on a flat, however it’s not yet agreed to, and are looking at other properties booked. I have chosen a nearby conveyancing solicitor in Oakleigh Park. What do I do now? At what stage do I apply for the mortgage with Principality?
It is understandable to have anxieties where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur costs too early (home loan application is approx one thousand pounds, then valuation, Oakleigh Park conveyancing search fees, etc). The first thing to do is ensure that your lawyer is on the Principality conveyancing panel. Regarding the next stages this very much depends on the specifics of your case, attraction to the property and on the state of the market. In a hot market some buyers would apply for the mortgage with Principality and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they request their lawyer to move forward with searches.
I own a renovated Georgian property in Oakleigh Park. Conveyancing solicitor represented me and Aldermore. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw two entries: the first freehold, the second leasehold under the exact same address. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?
You need to review the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Oakleigh Park and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they sell they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with buyers. You can also question the position with your conveyancing solicitor who conducted the conveyancing.