Much to our surprise we have been advised by our financial adviser that my Whitby lawyer is not on the bank Solicitor panel. How can I check?

You need to contact your Whitby lawyer directly. You lawyer should inform you of the situation. Where they are not on the panel they may recommend you to a Whitby conveyancing firm that is on the conveyancing panel for your mortgage company.

I am about to complete on the purchase of a property in Whitby but as a result of wreckage from some water damage at the property I have managed to agree compensation from the owner in the sum of £2k in the form of a adjustment in the price. I had intended this to be addressed as part of the conveyancing process but are not allowing this. Why were they informed?

Any that is on a conveyancing panel is duty bound to disclose to of any amendments to the sale price. If you prohibit your to notify the price change to then they would have to discontinue acting for you. In addition, and you would have to appoint a new for your conveyancing in Whitby.

We had appointed conveyancing lawyers locally in Whitby on the solicitor approved list. They are now charging me an additional fee for dealing with the mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by ?

Unfortunately, as long as it is in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your may charge a fee for this. This fee is not set by but by your Whitby . Some firms on the panel will charge an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.

I recently had an offer agreed on a house in Whitby. My financial adviser recommended their conveyancers. I paid an upfront payment of £175. A few days later, the called me to say that they were not on the conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?

You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.

I am selling my flat. I had a double glazing fitted in July 2006, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's mortgage company, are being difficult. The Whitby solicitor who is on the conveyancing panel is happy to accept ‘lack of building regulation’ insurance but are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?

It is probably the case that have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.

How does conveyancing in Whitby differ for newly converted properties?

Most buyers of new build premises in Whitby approach us having been asked by the developer to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is built. This is because new home sellers in Whitby usually acquire 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 Whitby or who has acted in the same development.

Whitby Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries before buying

Where a Whitby lease has less than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the salability of the apartment. Check with your mortgage company that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. A short lease means that you will probably have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of what this will be. Remember, in most cases you will need to own the premises for a couple of years in order to be entitled to exercise a lease extension. Who is in charge of the block? What is the service charge and ground rent on the apartment?