I am not in a position to travel far from Winchmore Hill. What is the rationale as to why all Winchmore Hill property lawyers are not on all mortgage company panels?
Banks normally restrict either the type or the number of conveyancing solicitors on their panel. Typical examples of such criteria being that the practice is required to have at least two partners. As well as restricting the structure of firm, some building societies made a decision to limit the size of their panel they use to act for them. It is worth noting that building societies have no responsibility for the accuracy of conveyancing provided by any Winchmore Hill lawyer on their approved list. Increases in mortgage fraud was the main trigger for the reduction of conveyancing panels a few years ago notwithstanding that there are conflicting points of view concerning the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Data from the Land Registry indicates that thousands of conveyancing organisations only transact less than three conveyances a year. Those vindicating conveyancing panel cuts question why conveyancing firms should have the right to be listed on a conveyancing panel when clearly property law is not their speciality?
What happens if my lawyer’s firm is suspended from the Clydesdale Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Winchmore Hill?
The first thing to point out is that, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit for a fee.
I used Wolstenholmes several years ago for my conveyancing in Winchmore Hill. I now require my papers but the law firm has closed. What do I do?
You should contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracking down your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Winchmore Hill of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously retained, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £235,500 and found one close by in Winchmore Hill I like with a park and station nearby, the downside is that it only has 51 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Winchmore Hill for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?
If you need a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be an issue. Discount the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you may request that they start the process of the extension and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer concerning this matter.
I was recommended by a few property agents in Winchmore Hill to get a quote from a property lawyer on your site. What’s the financial inducement for Estate Agents to offer your lawyers ahead of a competitor’s?
We refuse to offer any financial incentive for pointing buyers and sellers in our direction. We thought it would be too underhand a fee because members of the public would think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not receiving any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.