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Persimmons - Pulling out from the Solicitors which Builder advised

saxo_appeal
saxo_appeal Posts: 66 Forumite
First Anniversary Combo Breaker
edited 6 September 2017 at 7:31PM in House buying, renting & selling
Hi guys,

We have currently paid the Reservation for the new build plot in our area and we have notified the cabin (at the Persimmons builders site) that we wish to go with Mcvey & Murricane in Glasgow Scotland

I'm having second thoughts and I'm starting to read websites and people stating do not use the Solicitors which the Builders have advised :(

I don't know what it is, but I just get the feeling I should pull the plug and use one of our local town Solicitors.

Can anyone please advise at what stage you can terminate the dealings with the Solicitor, namely Mcvey and M.

Also would I get charged for pulling out? We are now at the stage, through Emails, the offer documents from our builder.

Something else which has popped up which we were neve told about was a Builders Documentation Fee @ £230, this is what has alerted me, and makes me think what else will we be asked to pay for which we haven't been told about
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Comments

  • davidmcn
    davidmcn Posts: 23,596 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post
    If you haven't even been in touch directly with the solicitors then there's nothing really to "pull out" of, just find another firm and tell the builders who they are.
  • saxo_appeal
    saxo_appeal Posts: 66 Forumite
    First Anniversary Combo Breaker
    Yes we have, we have been sending emails back and forth :(

    This is the last Email which was sent from them

    "Many thanks for completing the new build form. The next step is that one of our team will call you to arrange a telephone appointment with your conveyancer to discuss the contract"
  • davidmcn
    davidmcn Posts: 23,596 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post
    saxo_appeal wrote: »
    Yes we have, we have been sending emails back and forth :(

    This is the last Email which was sent from them

    "Many thanks for completing the new build form. The next step is that one of our team will call you to arrange a telephone appointment with your conveyancer to discuss the contract"

    Ok - have they sent you their terms of business? Told you what their fees are for abortive transactions? Not that I expect they've done enough work to justify a fee so far anyway. Just tell them to stop work and who you're using instead.
  • csgohan4
    csgohan4 Posts: 10,587 Forumite
    First Anniversary First Post Name Dropper Photogenic
    good call, best to use solicitors/conveyancers that you trust or near you


    Plus these solicitors may have a conflict of interest in ensuring the purchase has least problems for the vendor and not you
    "It is prudent when shopping for something important, not to limit yourself to Pound land/Estate Agents"

    G_M/ Bowlhead99 RIP
  • aMuseMe
    aMuseMe Posts: 10 Forumite
    Persimmon are notorious for guiding you towards their own solicitors - it's because they have a good number of restrictive covenants that they don't want challenged (I'm in the process of renegotiating a number of mutually exclusive clauses that need removal).

    Be cautious of their Annual Management Charges for communal areas - especially if your property is a freehold (if it's a leasehold then you have more rights to challenge any AMC, but different problems in terms of whether or not the leasehold can be purchased from them in the future without incurring exorbitant costs). If no terms of business has been exchanged, you have no contract. Get an independent solicitor who has dealt with Persimmon contracts before.

    Good luck :D
  • davidmcn
    davidmcn Posts: 23,596 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post
    aMuseMe wrote: »
    Be cautious of their Annual Management Charges for communal areas - especially if your property is a freehold (if it's a leasehold then you have more rights to challenge any AMC, but different problems in terms of whether or not the leasehold can be purchased from them in the future without incurring exorbitant costs).

    It's in Scotland, so a rather different regime (and no leasehold nonsense to worry about).
  • kingstreet
    kingstreet Posts: 38,754 Forumite
    First Anniversary Name Dropper Photogenic First Post
    saxo_appeal wrote: »
    Something else which has popped up which we were neve told about was a Builders Documentation Fee @ £230, this is what has alerted me, and makes me think what else will we be asked to pay for which we haven't been told about
    You'll be expected to pay the engrossment fees (fees for registering the property for the first time) whichever solicitor you use. The builder should have informed you of this.
    I am a mortgage broker. You should note that this site doesn't check my status as a Mortgage Adviser, so you need to take my word for it. This signature is here as I follow MSE's Mortgage Adviser Code of Conduct. Any posts on here are for information and discussion purposes only and shouldn't be seen as financial advice. Please do not send PMs asking for one-to-one-advice, or representation.
  • davidmcn
    davidmcn Posts: 23,596 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post
    kingstreet wrote: »
    You'll be expected to pay the engrossment fees (fees for registering the property for the first time) whichever solicitor you use. The builder should have informed you of this.
    They're not a buyer's solicitor's disbursement, they're just a subsidy charged by the builder towards their own legal costs. Not objectively justifiable but they get away with it.
  • kingstreet
    kingstreet Posts: 38,754 Forumite
    First Anniversary Name Dropper Photogenic First Post
    Agreed. That's why the builder should be disclosing them and not expecting the purchaser's solicitor to do it IMHO.
    I am a mortgage broker. You should note that this site doesn't check my status as a Mortgage Adviser, so you need to take my word for it. This signature is here as I follow MSE's Mortgage Adviser Code of Conduct. Any posts on here are for information and discussion purposes only and shouldn't be seen as financial advice. Please do not send PMs asking for one-to-one-advice, or representation.
  • saxo_appeal
    saxo_appeal Posts: 66 Forumite
    First Anniversary Combo Breaker
    My other half is mostly dealing with it all so she will have seen more as I'm away working


    The second last Email was the New Build Offer Email to look at and send back, along with the Report on Offer


    The last email was they were going to call to discuss contract which I mention in Post #3
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