It is 10 years ago since I acquired my home in Pontypool. Conveyancing lawyers have now been instructed on the sale but I am unable to track down the title deeds. Is this a major issue?
Don’t worry too much. Firstly the deeds may be retained by the lender or they may still be with the lawyers who oversaw your purchase. Secondly in most cases the title will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you own the property by your conveyancing solicitors obtaining current official copies of the land registers. Almost all conveyancing in Pontypool involves registered property but in the rare situation where your property is not registered it is more problematic but is not insurmountable.
My flat in Pontypool is up for sale and I have a purchaser. Will my have 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 panel criteria fairly frequently at the moment.
I used Wolstenholmes several years ago for my conveyancing in Pontypool. Now, I need the files however 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 Pontypool 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.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I put an offer in last month in what was supposed to be a quick, no chain conveyancing. Pontypool is where the house is located. What do you suggest?
Flying freeholds in Pontypool are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Pontypool you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds thoroughly. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Pontypool may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.
We're new on the property ladder - agreed a price, but the property agent informed us that the vendor will only go ahead if we appoint the agent's recommended solicitors as they are insisting on a ‘quick sale’. My instinct tells me that we should use a local solicitor accustomed to conveyancing in Pontypool
We suspect that the owner is unaware of this requirement. If they desire ‘a quick sale', alienating a motivated purchaser is going to damage their objectives. Try to communicate with the vendors directly and make the point that (a)you are motivated purchasers (b)you are ready to progress, with finances arranged © you have nothing to sell (d) you intend to proceed fast (e)but you intend to appoint your preferred Pontypool conveyancing lawyers - as opposed tothe ones that will give their negotiator at the agency a kickback or meet his conveyancing targets demanded by corporate headquarters.