Our conveyancer has discovered a defect with the lease for the property we are purchasing in Petersfield. The seller’s lawyers have suggested defective title insurance as a solution. We are content with insurance and will pay for it. Our conveyancer has advised that he must be satisfied that the bank is happy with this solution. Who is the client here, us or the bank?
The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the potential for a conflict of interest, you and the bank are the client. Your conveyancing practitioner must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects with the lease so that the mortgage company can be afforded the opportunity to check with their valuer as to the extent that the value of the property is affected. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your conveyancing practitioner will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.
There are numerous conveyancing solicitors in Petersfield but how do I know who's good?
We would encourage you not to base your choice on the lowest Petersfield conveyancing quote. You really do get what you pay for when it comes to conveyancing solicitors. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you go into the conveyancing with your eyes wide open.
After months of negotiation I have agreed a price on a house in Petersfield. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their lawyer. I paid an upfront payment of £175. A couple of days later, the conveyancer contacted me embarrassingly acknowledging that they were not on the Kent Reliance 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 Kent Reliance 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.
At last I have had an offer on a maisonette in Petersfield agreed to, but there is a chain. The sellers have put an offer on on an apartment, but it’s not yet tied up, and have viewings of other properties booked. I have chosen a bricks and mortar conveyancing solicitor in Petersfield. What should be my next step? At what point do I apply for the mortgage with TSB?
It is normal to have anxieties where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket too early (home loan application is approx one thousand pounds, then survey, Petersfield conveyancing search charges, etc). First, you must check that your lawyer is on the TSB approved list. Regarding the subsequent steps this very much dictated by the circumstances of your transaction, motivation for this property and on the state of the market. In a rising market some buyers would apply for the mortgage with TSB and arrange for the valuation and only if it was satisfactory would they request their conveyancing practitioner to move forward with searches.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified as part of conveyancing in Petersfield?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Petersfield. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
Due to the encouragement of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Petersfield before retaining lawyers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold aspect to the property. My surveyor advised that some lenders may not give a loan on this type of home.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Santander has different instructions from Halifax. If you contact us we can look into this further with the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Petersfield. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Petersfield especially if they are familiar with such properties in Petersfield.
What does commercial conveyancing in Petersfield cover?
Petersfield conveyancing for business premises incorporates a wide array of services, offered by qualified solicitors, relating to business property. By way of example, this area of conveyancing can cover the sale or purchase of freehold business premises or, more commonly, the assignment of existing business tenancies or the drafting of new leasing arrangements. Commercial conveyancing solicitors can also offer advice on the sale of business assets, commercial loans and the termination of tenancies.