Free Mortgage Legal Services

All mortgage services have to be paid by someone. Nothing is ever truly free and this is always the case when it comes to financial products. 

 

Buyers are often tempted by free a valuation and free legal work. On the face of it these two can save an applicant hundreds of pounds. 

 

There is little that can go wrong with a valuation, especially where the loan to value is quite low. However, when it comes to legal work, this is a service that requires a lot of expertise and attention to detail over a prolonger period. It requires very good communication coupled with expertise to get the right result. Here lies the problem. High workloads and with poor revenue for conveyancing firms frequently results in very poor performance. Whilst there is an initial saving on cash outlay for a re-mortgage with free legal services, the actual cost can be very high if there are delays in the process. In our experience some delays have resulted from incompetence and desperately poor management skills. (Something about monkeys and peanuts comes to mind) 

 

Does it matter? Yes, it matters a great deal. For a remortgage any prolonged delay and an applicant might be forced into their standard variable rate period, meaning additional cost. When it comes to a purchase a delay of this kind could result in the the loss of the new home. Disaster!  

 

What is the solution? 

The answer is to take the conveyancing work for the re-mortgage into your own hands. Do not rely on a lender conveyancer. 

Many lenders have introduced cash-back schemes to pay for the cost of re-mortgage legal work. My advice is to opt for the cash incentive instead of the free legals if you want to save money and then appoint your own conveyancer for your mortgage or re-mortgage work. 

If you need help in this The Mortgages Company has an excellent network of legal firms to tap into.