We are buying a 3 bedroom flat in High Holborn with a mortgage. We like our High Holborn conveyancer, however the bank advise he's not on their "panel". It appears that we have little option but to instruct one of the mortgage company panel conveyancing practices or continue with our High Holborn property lawyer and pay for one of their panel firms to act for them. This feels very unfair; can we not demand that the bank use our High Holborn property lawyer ?
No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’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. Another option that might be available is for your High Holborn conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
Should my solicitor be raising questions regarding flooding during the conveyancing in High Holborn.
The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for solicitors specialising in conveyancing in High Holborn. Plenty of people will purchase a property in High Holborn, completely aware that at some time, it may be flooded. However, leaving to one side the physical destruction, where a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, suitable building insurance, or sell the property. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the buyer.
Solicitors are not qualified to give advice on flood risk, however there are a number of checks that can be undertaken by the buyer or by their lawyers which should figure out the risks in High Holborn. The conventional set of completed inquiry forms given to a buyer’s lawyer (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) contains a usual inquiry of the vendor to determine if the premises has suffered from flooding. If flooding has previously occurred and is not disclosed by the vendor, then a buyer could commence a compensation claim as a result of such an misleading answer. A buyer’s lawyers may also commission an environmental search. This will higlight whether there is a recorded flood risk. If so, further inquiries should be made.
Me and my brother own a semi-detached Victorian house in High Holborn. Conveyancing practitioner acted for me and Alliance & Leicester . I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and I saw a couple of entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold with the matching property. I thought I was buying a freehold how can I check?
You should 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 proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in High Holborn and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with lenders. You can also question the situation with the conveyancing practitioner who conducted the purchase.
How does conveyancing in High Holborn differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in High Holborn come to us having been asked by the housebuilder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the property is ready to move into. This is because developers in High Holborn typically purchase the land, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancing solicitors as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are accustomed to new build conveyancing in High Holborn or who has acted in the same development.
I need to find a conveyancing solicitor for sale conveyancing in High Holborn. I have chance upon a site which seems to have the perfect offering If it is possible to get all formalities done via phone that would be preferable. Do I need to be wary? What are the potential pitfalls?
As usual with these online conveyancers you need to read ALL the small print - did you notice the extra charge for dealing with the mortgage?