Will my conveyancing lawyers need to check that the building insurance when buying a house in Tonbridge. My lender is Nationwide Building Society
Nationwide Building Society have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook. As of 7/9/2025, the requirements read as follows :
We had appointed conveyancing lawyers based in Tonbridge on the Santander solicitor approved list. They are now charging me a separate charge for handling the Santander mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by Santander?
As unfair as it may appear, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your property lawyer can charge a fee for this. This fee is not set by Santander but by your Tonbridge solicitor. Numerous firms on the Santander panel will levy ’dealing with mortgage’ fee but many firms include it on their overall fee.
I currently have a mortgage with Virgin Money for my property in Tonbridge. Conveyancing was finalised months ago. If I am intending to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Virgin Money?
Your original mortgage agreement with Virgin Money will provide that you need their approval in advance of letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Virgin Money’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will permit you to let out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Virgin Money directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Virgin Money conveyancing panel firm.
It is unclear whether my lender requires a lease extension. I have telephoned my Tonbridge building society branch on a couple of occasions and was told they are content with the situation and they would lend. My Tonbridge conveyancing solicitor - who is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel- called to say that they refuse to lend in accordance with their UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook minimum lease term requirements. Who do I believe?
The conveyancing practitioner has to comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook Part 2 conditions for your lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the bank will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the bank to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my house are lost. The solicitors who handled the conveyancing in Tonbridge 10 years ago have long since closed. Will I be able to sell the house?
Assuming the title is registered the information relating to your ownership will be documented by the Land Registry under a Title Number. It is easy to conduct a search at the Land Registry, find your house and get current copies of the property title for less than a fiver. If the property is Leasehold then the Land Registry will also normally hold a file copy of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be obtained for twenty pounds.
Due to the guidance of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a property in Tonbridge prior to retaining conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold element to the house. My surveyor has said that some lenders may not give a mortgage on a flying freehold home.
It varies from the lender to lender. HSBC has different instructions from Halifax. Should you wish to telephone us we can investigate further via the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Tonbridge. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.
Am I right to be wary about 3rd parties that I am dealing with are recommending an online conveyancing firm rather than a High Street Tonbridge conveyancing firm?
As with many service providers, often referrals from connections can be extremely useful or valuable. Yet there are numerous parties with a keen interest in a conveyancing transaction; estate agents, mortgage brokers and mortgage companies may put forward solicitors to appoint. On occasion the lawyers might be known to one of the organisations as experts in their field, but occasionally there might be a commercial relationship behind the endorsement. You are free to appoint your preferred conveyancer. Don't forget that many mortgage providers specify a panel list of conveyancers you are obliged to use for the lender related work in your home move.