In what way does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in Thame? Why is this being asked of me?
To satisfy the Money Laundering Regulations any Thame conveyancing firm will require proof of identity in all conveyancing transactions. This is normally satisfied by provision of a passport and an original bank statement or utility account showing where you live.
In accordance with Money Laundering Regulations, conveyancers are obliged by law to validate not only the ID of conveyancing clients but also the origin of the money that they receive in respect of any matter. An unwillingness to disclose this will lead to your lawyer cancelling their retainer with you, as clearly this will cause a conflict between the set Regulations and a refusal to disclose.
Your property lawyers will have an obligation to inform the relevant authorities should they consider that any monies received by them may contravene the Money Laundering Regulations.
My property lawyer in Thame is not on the Norwich and Peterborough Building Society Approved Panel. Is it possible for me to continue with my family solicitor notwithstanding that they are excluded from the Norwich and Peterborough Building Society approved list?
Your options are as follows:
- Carry on with your preferred Thame lawyers but Norwich and Peterborough Building Society will need to use a conveyancer on their list of acceptable firms. This will inevitably rack up the overall legal charges and result in frustration.
- Choose a new practitioner to act in the purchase, obviously checking they are on the Norwich and Peterborough Building Society panel
Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and identified one round the corner in Thame I like with a park and transport links in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 51 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Thame for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a short lease?
If you need a home loan the shortness of the lease will likely be problematic. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the property for at least 2 years you may request that they start the process of the extension and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor concerning this.
We are four weeks into a freehold purchase having been referred to conveyancers by the estate agent to handle our conveyancing in Thame. I am am extremely dissatisfied with the quality of service. Can you you assist me in finding new lawyers?
They would need to be really poor in order to consider replacing them. Has your mortgage offer been issued? In the event that it has you must advise them of the new lawyer and get the mortgage documents are re-sent. Your new conveyancer needs to be on the lenders approved list to avoid escalating costs and frustration. So that should be your first question of the new solicitors. The search tool can help you find a bank approved conveyancer for your home move in Thame
Me and my partner are purchasing a three room apartmentin Thame with a mortgage from a lender. We like our lawyer in Thame however our mortgage company says she’s not approved on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the our bank panel solicitors or keep our Thame conveyancer and incur the extra fees for one of their panel ones to represent our lender. We feel as though this is unjust; is there anything we can do?
Unfortunately,no. The bank mortgage issued is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank's conveyancing panel. Until recently, most mortgage companies had open panels, including many conveyancing solicitors in Thame : a mortgagee 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. Another option that might be available is for your lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for your lender.