Do lenders provide you with an approved list of Witney conveyancing solicitors? How do you know who is on the Nationwide conveyancing panel?
Witney conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Nationwide conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Nationwide directly.
We have a mortgage agreed in principle with TSB. Witney conveyancing solicitors have been appointed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from TSB?
Some lenders take longer than others. Have TSB completed the valuation? Have you informed TSB as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the TSB conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.
I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Co-operative. I assume I don't need a Witney lawyer on the Co-operative panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?
If you have finished paying off your Co-operative mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Co-operative mortgage from the register. Co-operative, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Co-operative has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Co-operative has instructed the Land Registry to do so
After shopping around on the internet I have found a Witney property lawyer having checked that they are on the Santander conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
Santander will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Santander will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Witney surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
Should our solicitor be raising questions about flooding during the conveyancing in Witney.
Flooding is a growing risk for lawyers conducting conveyancing in Witney. There are those who purchase a house in Witney, fully aware that at some time, it may be flooded. However, aside from the physical destruction, if a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, adequate insurance cover, or dispose of the premises. Steps can be carried out during the course of a house purchase to forewarn the buyer.
Solicitors are not best placed to impart advice on flood risk, but there are a numerous checks that may be initiated by the purchaser or on a buyer’s behalf which will figure out the risks in Witney. The conventional set of completed inquiry forms given to a purchaser’s conveyancer (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) incorporates a usual inquiry of the seller to discover if the premises has historically flooded. In the event that flooding has previously occurred and is not revealed by the vendor, then a purchaser could bring a compensation claim as a result of such an inaccurate reply. A purchaser’s solicitors will also conduct an environmental report. This will higlight if there is any known flood risk. If so, additional inquiries will need to be initiated.
I purchased a renovated Edwardian property in Witney. Conveyancing lawyer acted for me and Santander. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw two entries: one for freehold, the second leasehold under the matching property. I'd like to know for sure, how can I find out??
You should assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for 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 Witney and other locations in 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 purchasers. You can also question the situation with your conveyancing lawyer who completed the work.
I'm buying a new build house in Witney benefiting from help to buy. The developers would not move on the amount so I negotiated £7000 of fixtures and fittings instead. The sale representative told me not reveal to my solicitor about this side-deal as it will 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.