Our lawyer has uncovered a a legal deficiency with the lease for the apartment we are purchasing in St Johns. The other side have offered defective title insurance as a solution. We are content with insurance and will cover the costs. Our lawyer has advised that he must be satisfied that the mortgage company is willing to move forward with this solution. Who is the client here, us or the bank?

Regardless of the fact that you have a mortgage offer from the bank does not mean to say that the property will meet their requirements for the purposes of a mortgage. Your lawyer has to ensure that the lease has to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook specifications. You and the mortgage company are the client. The appropriate lender conditions have to be complied with.

I purchased a freehold premises in St Johns yet charged rent, why is this and what is this?

It’s unusual for properties in St Johns and has limited impact for conveyancing in St Johns but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.

Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges have existed for many centuries, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the generation of new rentcharges post 1977.

Old rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence after 2037 is to be extinguished.

I moved into my house on 4 August and my personal details is yet to be registered. Need I be worried? My conveyancing solicitor in St Johns expressed confidence that it should be concluded in a couple of weeks. Are properties in St Johns uniquely lengthy to register?

There is nothing unique about conveyancing in St Johns registration formalities. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timeframes can adjust according to the party submitting the application, whether it is in order and whether the Land registry communicate with any 3rd persons or bodies. At present in the region of 80% of submission are completed within 12 days but occasionally there can be longer delays. Historically registration takes place once the purchaser is living at the premises so an expedited registration is not typically an essential issue yet if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your solicitor can communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for an expedited registration.

What tools are available to identify a St Johns solicitor on the Nationwide Building Society conveyancing panel? I have a car and am prepared to travel upto 20miles to meet the lawyer.

You can use the search on this page. Please choose the mortgage company and your location and you will see a number of St Johns conveyancing lawyers based on proximity. We have detailed some St Johns conveyancing firms at the bottom of this page and you can telephone them to verify whether they are on the Nationwide Building Society approved list

I am purchasing a flat with all finances in place. I have provided lawyer with 2 distinct forms of photographic identification, bank statement, numerous utility bills. Now he wants a copy from a probate lawyer acknowledging that the funds are legitimate and that it has come from inheritance and not dealing E's in Ibiza.

For some years now requires conveyancing solicitors as well as banks, building societies and other financial institutes to obtain satisfactory evidence of the identity of the client. This is because solicitors who deal with money and property on behalf of their clients can be used by criminals wishing to launder money. In order to comply with the law of money laundering, your St Johns conveyancing lawyer will need to obtain evidence of your identity as as well as make sure that your funds are legitimate.