“Are Conveyancing Lawyers Necessary?” Redux

In part 2 of the HBA's article in the EdgeProp's Property Chat column, "Why You Need Lawyers? ..." the author notes the conveyancing lawyer is supposed to get a letter from the developer's bridging financer to exclude the property in the event the developer becomes bankrupt.

I want to highlight this is a very important letter because there have been court cases where a bona fide purchaser "lost" the title to a property purchased via a properly executed SPA from a developer because the developer subsequently and unfortunately went into liquidation. The law courts ruled a chargee (the developer's bridging financer) rights’ overruled the rights of a bona fide property purchaser. CF James Edward Buxton v Supreme Finance, 4 CLJ 1945.

Some years ago, my Better Half bought a 5* seafront resort condominium from E, a reputable developer (a listed group with interests in property development and hotels). Her conveyancing lawyer "forgot' to get the said letter from the developer's financier. I told my Better Half the probability E ever going under was infinitesimally small. But better to be prudent & get the letter.

The point I am of course trying to make is that not all developers have same strong financial balances as E. The HBA maintains a list of abandoned housing projects because their developers ran into financial difficulty.

See also my earlier post to 360 KLCC, "Are conveyancing lawyers necessary?" written as a reaction to Part 1. For the record I disagree with HBA. In Australia, the origin of the Torrens system of property registration, buyers do NOT need a lawyer to do conveyancing for residential properties. In the land of Oz, buyers have a choice of using licensed conveyancers or settlement officers. Why not also in Bolehland? I see it is possible to do DIY conveyancing in Malaysia. But for most people I think they are probably better off using a conveyancing lawyer.

Answers on a postcard please from conveyancing lawyers.

Post Script

In the UK, you can do your own property conveyancing if you are a cash buyer. See also here : https://hmlandregistry.blog.gov.uk/2014/02/24/conveyancing-solicitor-or-diy/.

#conveyancing #buyingahome #checklistproperty #EdgeProp #HouseBuyersAssociation #abandonedhousingprojects #propertylaw #lawyers