My fiance and I are refinancing our penthouse in Shenstone with Bank of Ireland. We have a son 19 who lives at home. Our solicitor requested us to identify any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the property is repossessed. I have a couple of concerns (1) Is this document specific to the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we remortgaged 3 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this compromise his entitlement to inherit the property?
On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Bank of Ireland. This is solely used to protect Bank of Ireland if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Bank of Ireland had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
Finally the sale completed on my house in Shenstone last January yet the purchaser is SMS messaging daily to say his lawyer is waiting to hear from mine. What should my lawyer have done following completion?
Post completion of your house sale your conveyancer should forward the transfer documentation and all of the paperwork to the buyer’s conveyancer. If applicable, your lawyer must also confirm that the legal charge in favour of the lender has been paid off to the purchasers conveyancers. There is unlikely to be post completion procedures just for conveyancing in Shenstone.
I have a decision in principle. The bank mentioned the home loan came with free conveyancing. Is the implication that I have to instruct their panel lawyer as I would much rather appoint a Shenstone based conveyancing firm?
Do check but the chances are that give you one of their panel lawyers should you want the "fee-free" deal. Contact the mortgage company to see if they make available a cash alternative. It is not unheard for a lender to give a £250 cashback as an alternative in which case that money can go towards the cost for your conveyancing solicitor in Shenstone.
A relative pointed out to me me that in purchasing a property in Shenstone there may be a number of restrictions preventing external alterations to the property. Is this right?
We are aware of a number of properties in Shenstone which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to execute external variations. Part of the conveyancing in Shenstone should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.
Last month we had a mortgage agreed in principle with Kent Reliance. Shenstone conveyancing solicitors are instructed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from Kent Reliance?
Some lenders take longer than others. Have Kent Reliance done the valuation? Have you advised Kent Reliance as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel? Sometimes it can take as long as six weeks for a mortgage offer to be issued.
The formalities of my purchase has taken place for my property in Shenstone. Conveyancing was satisfactory but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. How do I make a complaint?
Almost all banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first port of call should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Services Department at head office. We understand that complaints to a lender are resolved effectively and efficiently. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR who will take matters further.
My partner and I are downsizing from our home in Shenstone and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a risk of it being constructed land that was not decontaminated. Any high street Shenstone lawyer would know this is not the case. It does beg the question why the purchasers are using a web based conveyancing practice as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Shenstone. We have lived in Shenstone for 5 years we know that this is a non issue. Do we get in touch with our local Authority to obtain confirmation that the buyers are looking for.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing firm already. Are they able to advise? You must check with your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same illness)