My husband and I are approaching an exchange on a flat in Bristol and my mum and dad have sent the exchange deposit to my . I am now informed that as the deposit has not arrived from me my needs to disclose this to my bank. I am advised that, in also acting for the mortgage company he must inform them that the balance of the purchase price is coming from anyone other than me. I advised the bank regarding my parents' contribution when I applied for the home loan, so is it really appropriate for this now to hold matters up?
Your is legally required to clarify with the bank to make sure that they are aware that the balance of the purchase price is not from your own resources. The solicitor can only notify this to your mortgage company if you agree, failing which, your lawyer must cease to continue acting.
My home in Bristol is up for sale and I have a purchaser. Will the need to be on the conveyancing panel in order to deal with paying off my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. It might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their conditions fairly frequently at the moment.
My wife and I are selling our home in Bristol and according to the buyers it appears that there is a possibility that the property was built on contaminated land. Any high street Bristol lawyer would know this is not the case. It does beg the question why the buyers instructed a web based conveyancing practice as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Bristol. Having lived in Bristol for 4 years we know of no issue. Is it a good idea to get in touch with our local Authority to get clarification that the buyers are looking for.
It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing lawyer currently acting for you. Are they able to advise? You must check with your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same ailment)
I bought my apartment on 2 August and the transaction details is yet to be registered. Need I be worried? My conveyancing solicitor in Bristol said it should be registered in less than a month. Are transfers in Bristol particularly slow to register?
As far as conveyancing in Bristol registration is no faster or slower than anywhere else in the country. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timeframes can differ subject to who lodges the application, whether there are errors and whether the Land registry communicate with any interested parties. As of today roughly 80% of submission are fully dealt with in less than three weeks but occasionally there can be extensive delays. Registration takes place once the purchaser has moved in to the premises thus post completion formalities is not always top priority but if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your lawyers can communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for an expedited registration.
Do I need to be concerned that brokers that I am dealing with are recommending a web based conveyancing firm rather than a High Street Bristol conveyancing practice?
As is the case with many professional services, often referrals from connections can be worth their weight in gold. Yet there are many parties with a vested interest in a conveyancing transaction; estate agents, mortgage brokers and lenders may put forward lawyers to use. On occasion these solicitors might be known to one of the organisations as being good in their field, but sometimes there might be a financial incentive behind the recommendation. You are at liberty to select your own lawyer. Don't forget that some banks specify a panel list of lawyers you have to use for the mortgage aspect of your conveyancing.