Why do I have to pay up front for conveyancing in Westerham?

Where you are retaining lawyers for conveyancing in Westerham your solicitor will request that you place them with monies to cover the the cost of the conveyancing searches. Ordinarily this is requested to cover the fees of the conveyancing searches. When the down payment is payable against the purchase price then this will be required immediately ahead of contracts are exchanged. The closing balance that is needed will be payable a few days prior to the day of completion.

My friend recommended that where I am purchasing in Westerham I should ask my conveyancer to execute a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?

A search of this type is sometimes quoted for as part of the standard Westerham conveyancing searches. It is not a small document of about 40 pages, listing and detailing significant information about Westerham around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime statistics, Local Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data regarding Westerham.

I'm buying a new build house in Westerham with a mortgage from Barnsley Building Society. The builders would not reduce the amount so I negotiated £7000 of fixtures and fittings instead. The estate agent told me not to tell my solicitor about this side-deal as it could affect my loan with the bank. Should I keep quiet?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

I am looking into buying my first house which is in Westerham and I am already nervous. I couldn't find anything specific about Westerham. Conveyancing will be needed in due course but do you know about the Westerham area? or perhaps some other tips you can share?

Rather than looking online forget looking online you should go and have a look at Westerham. In the meantime here are some basic statistics that we found

We are seeking to buy a repression flat in Westerham and the bank selling would like to complete inside a week. Can a lawyer complete in this timeframe? Am I best advised to use a local Westerham firm or an online company that advertises to complete quickly?

Visit your Westerham high street. Go in to 3 solicitor’s offices and request to talk to a conveyancing solicitor for an estimate. Explain your requirements and seek a commitment on time frames. Appoint the firm that appears most genuine. Make sure to use a conveyancing practitioner on the panel of lawyers approved by your lender.