My husband and I are hoping to purchase a property in Rochester and have appointed a Rochester conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with a view to exchanging next week. Leeds Building Society have this evening contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Rochester conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is conventional for the purchasers' solicitors to also represent the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Rochester solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
What will a local search reveal about the house I am buying in Rochester?
Rochester conveyancing often commences with the ordering local authority searches directly from your local Authority or via a personal search organisations for instance Searchflow The local search plays a central role in most Rochester conveyancing purchase; that is if you wish to avoid any nasty once you have moved into your property. The search should reveal information on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the premises (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 topic headings.
How does conveyancing in Rochester differ for new build properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in Rochester approach us having been asked by the builder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is constructed. This is because house builders in Rochester tend to purchase the site, 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 property lawyers 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 Rochester or who has acted in the same development.
I was recommended by numerous selling agents in Rochester to select a property lawyer using your seach tool. What’s the financial advantage for Estate Agents to market your lawyers rather than a competitor’s?
We refuse to offer any referral fee for pointing buyers and sellers in our direction. We found it would be just too difficult a fee because members of the public would think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not getting any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.
What can I do to find out who owns a house in Rochester?
On the basis that the property is registered with HM Land Registry, and you have the information of the location of the property, you will be able to obtain details from the HM Land Registry of the recorded proprietor for a a minimal charge.