Is the fact that my conveyancer in Sidmouth is not identified on my lender's solicitor panel that there is a problem with the standard of his work?
It would be unwise to jump to that conclusion. There are all sorts of perfectly reasonable explanations. Just recently a report by the solicitors regulator revealed that over three quarters of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The top 5 reasons are as follows: (1) lack of transactions (2) the lawyer is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. Where you are concerned you should contact the Sidmouth conveyancing firm and enquire why they are no longer on the approved list for your mortgage company.
Please help. My Sidmouth conveyancer is informing me me that he is legally obliged toapply for Sidmouth conveyancing searches becausethe firm are on the HSBCconveyancing panel. Is my conveyancer correct?
You have limited options available to you. As you are obtaining a home loan with a lender your conveyancer has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the UK Finance Conveyancing Handbook. Your lawyer would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of your lender’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to follow the CML Handbook specifications . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Sidmouth conveyancing searches.
I have a mortgage with Skipton for my property in Sidmouth. Conveyancing was finalised 12 months ago. If I am intending to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Skipton?
You must advise Skipton in advance of renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of Skipton’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Skipton directly. You need not do this via a Skipton conveyancing panel firm.
It is not clear whether my lender requires a lease extension. I have telephoned my Sidmouth bank branch on numerous occasions and was told it wasn't a problem and they would lend. My Sidmouth conveyancing solicitor - who is on the lender conveyancing panel- called and was told they would not lend in accordance with their specific requirements. Who do I believe?
As long as the property lawyer is on the lender approved list, she or he must follow the CML Handbook specifications for the bank. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the bank will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the lender to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
I had an offer accepted on a house in Sidmouth on 21/8/2026, valuation was booked 3 days after, all came back fine. Conveyancer retained, so all that was missing was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to UBS and chasing them on my offer, I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the UBS conveyancing panel. Are UBS entitled to hold back the Mortgage pending the lawyer being on the approved list?
A lender would not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for UBS to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the UBS conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
We are downsizing from our house in Sidmouth and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a possibility that the property was constructed land that was not decontaminated. A high street Sidmouth conveyancer would know that there is no such problem. It does beg the question why the buyers used a national conveyancing practice as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Sidmouth. Having lived in Sidmouth for many years we know of no issue. Do we get in touch with our local Authority to get clarification that there is no issue.
It would appear that you have a conveyancing firm currently acting for you. What do they say? 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 life insurance to cover that same sickness)
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up as part of conveyancing in Sidmouth?
Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Sidmouth. 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…’
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold element on a house I put an offer in last month in what was supposed to be a quick, no chain conveyancing. Sidmouth is where the house is located. Can you offer any assistance?
Flying freeholds in Sidmouth are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Sidmouth you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds very carefully. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Sidmouth 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 residence.