What does a solicitor do on Mortgage and Re-mortgage?
A mortgage is a loan secured on your home. Before a lender releases any funds, it needs a solicitor to confirm that the title to the property is good and that the lender's charge will be registered against it. Your solicitor reviews the loan offer and its conditions with you, investigates title, gives the lender a certificate of title and a written undertaking, draws down the funds and registers the charge with Tailte Éireann. Tormeys Solicitors carry out this work on house purchases, re-mortgages and switches for clients in Athlone and throughout Co. Westmeath.
We do not advise on mortgage products, interest rates or which lender to choose. That is a matter for you and a regulated financial adviser. Our role begins once you have approval in principle or a loan offer in hand.
Your mortgage when buying a home
For most buyers the mortgage and the purchase run side by side. The legal steps on the loan form part of the wider work we describe on our purchasing a property page, but they carry their own checks.
Reviewing the loan offer. We go through the offer with you line by line, including special conditions such as life cover, valuation requirements or evidence of savings. Conditions left until late in a transaction are one of the most common causes of delay.
Investigating title. We check that the seller can give good title and that nothing on the folio or the deeds would concern a lender. Older properties on Castle Street, Connaught Street and in Irishtown may still be held on unregistered title. Co. Westmeath has been subject to compulsory first registration since 1 April 2006, so buying an unregistered property here means registering the title with Tailte Éireann as part of the purchase.
Certificate of title and undertaking. Before drawdown we certify title to your lender and give a solicitor's undertaking to register its charge and hold the title deeds to its order.
Drawdown and completion. Once the lender is satisfied, it releases the loan funds to us and we complete the purchase on the agreed closing date.
Registering the charge. After completion we lodge the mortgage for registration so the lender's charge appears on the folio. We then report to the lender under our undertaking.
Lending limits are set by the Central Bank of Ireland mortgage measures and your broker or lender will explain how they apply to you. If you are budgeting for the legal side, our house purchase calculator gives an indicative breakdown of fees and outlays before you instruct us.
Re-mortgage and switching lender
A re-mortgage is a new loan secured on a home you already own, either with your current lender or with a new one. Many homeowners assume they are tied to the bank that gave them their first mortgage. That is rarely the case. Switching is now a routine part of our conveyancing work.
Homeowners usually come to us to switch for one of these reasons.
A better rate. The saving over the remaining term can outweigh the cost of switching. The CCPC guide to switching your mortgage is a useful independent starting point.
Coming off a fixed rate. The end of a fixed period is the natural time to review whether your lender is still competitive. Breaking a fixed rate early may carry a breakage charge, so check that figure with your lender first.
Releasing equity. Where your home has increased in value, you may borrow against that equity to fund an extension, an attic conversion or another purchase.
Clearing a second charge. Where more than one charge is registered against the property, a single new loan can replace both.
Adding or removing a name. On marriage, separation or where one owner buys out another, the mortgage usually has to be replaced rather than amended. The title often needs to change as well.
On a switch, we take up the title deeds from your current lender, review the new loan offer with you, certify title to the new lender and give our undertaking. On the switching date we use the new funds to redeem the existing mortgage. We then register the new charge and have the old one removed from the folio.
Many lenders offer switchers a contribution towards legal costs. We confirm our own fee in writing before you commit, so you can weigh it against the saving.
Why homeowners in Athlone switch lender
A better interest rate. The most common reason. The saving over the remaining term of a mortgage frequently exceeds the legal cost of switching by a considerable margin.
Coming off a fixed rate. The end of a fixed-rate period is the natural point at which to review whether the existing lender is still competitive.
Releasing equity. Where the value of a property has increased, a homeowner may borrow against that equity to fund an extension, an attic conversion or another purchase. Values in the estates at Retreat, Summerhill, Coosan and Monksland have moved considerably over the last decade to say the least and many homeowners have more equity than they generally realise.
Consolidating a second mortgage or charge. Where more than one charge is registered against the property, a single new loan can clear both.
Removing or adding a name. On separation, on marriage or where a co-owner is being bought out, the mortgage usually has to be replaced rather than amended.
We do not advise on mortgage products, interest rates or which lender to choose. That is a matter for you and a regulated financial adviser. Our role begins once you have a loan offer in hand.
Our mortgage services
A common perception is that once you take out a mortgage with a bank or financial institution that you are compelled to stick with them for the duration of the mortgage or until the house or apartment is sold. The idea of switching mortgages can be daunting, however, it is becoming more and more popular and house owners may secure significant financial benefits by switching their mortgage provider.
When switching mortgages, your new bank will require security over the dwellinghouse and it will require the registration of a fresh mortgage against the property. We at Tormeys can provide an up-dated certificate confirming that all issues in relation to title and planning matters are in order. There will be documentation to be executed to process the mortgage application itself and the registration of the mortgage as a charge or burden against the property.
Many of the financial institutions offer incentives for people to switch including contributions towards the legal costs involved in switching the mortgage. Part of the process will involve the removal of the existing burden or charge registered against your property for the previous mortgage.
Tormeys Solicitors will look after all the legal issues and we have a specialised workflow system to make the process as efficient and stress free for our customers as possible. If there are financial advantages to switching your mortgage, you should consider doing so and let Tormeys Solicitors guide you through the process.
Redeeming a mortgage and the deed of discharge
When a mortgage is repaid, whether from the proceeds of a sale, from new borrowing or because the term has run its course, the charge must be formally removed. Your lender issues a deed of discharge. This is lodged with Tailte Éireann so the charge comes off the folio.
Until it is, the register continues to show a mortgage against your home. Homeowners who cleared a mortgage without a solicitor involved are often unaware the discharge was never registered. We see it regularly, usually at the point of sale when it is least convenient.
If you have paid off a mortgage on a home in Athlone or elsewhere in Co. Westmeath and are unsure whether the charge was removed, we can check the folio for you. If a sale is on the horizon, our house sale calculator gives an indicative figure for the legal costs.
Tormeys Solicitors are authorised and registered with the Legal Services Regulatory Authority. Our solicitors are members of the Law Society of Ireland.
How we handle your mortgage file
- Initial contact. You call or send an enquiry and tell us whether you are buying, switching or clearing a mortgage.
- Fee in writing. We confirm our fee and the likely outlays in writing before you instruct us, so there are no surprises.
- Loan offer review. We go through the loan offer and its conditions with you at the start of the file, not the end.
- Title and certification. We investigate title, resolve any issues and certify title to the lender.
- Drawdown. The lender releases funds against our undertaking and we complete the purchase or redeem your existing loan.
- Registration. We register the new charge, have any old charge discharged and confirm to you once the folio is updated.
We use a specialised workflow system to keep each file moving and every step recorded. Every transaction is different, so we do not quote a fixed timescale. What we will do is keep you informed at each stage.
Frequently asked questions about Mortgages
What does a solicitor check in a mortgage loan offer?
We check the amount, the term, the rate type and every special condition attached to the offer. Special conditions might require life assurance, a satisfactory valuation, evidence of savings or a specific form of property insurance. Some must be met before the lender will release funds. A condition discovered late can hold up a closing, so we explain each one in plain English and tell you what needs to be done and by whom. Our team on Castle Street reviews loan offers regularly for buyers across Co. Westmeath.
Does the same solicitor act for me and for the lender?
In most Irish residential transactions, yes. Under the certificate of title system agreed between the Law Society of Ireland and mortgage lenders, the borrower’s solicitor certifies title directly to the lender. The lender relies on that certificate and the solicitor’s undertaking rather than appointing its own solicitor to investigate title. This keeps costs down for you. It also means your solicitor carries a personal responsibility to the lender, which is why we check title thoroughly before we sign the certificate.
What is a solicitor's undertaking to a lender?
An undertaking is a personal, binding promise from a solicitor to a lender. On a mortgage, the solicitor undertakes to use the loan funds for the agreed purpose, to register the lender’s charge against the property and to hold the title deeds to the lender’s order. It can be enforced against the solicitor personally. The undertaking is what allows a lender to release funds before its security is registered. It is the main reason a lender will not release funds unless a solicitor is acting.
Do I need a solicitor to switch mortgage lender?
Yes. A new lender will not release funds until a solicitor has investigated title, certified it and given an undertaking to register the new charge and discharge the old one. The solicitor also redeems your existing mortgage from the new funds on the switching date. A switch involves less work than a purchase because there is no contract, no seller and no negotiation. We confirm our fee in writing before you commit so you can compare it with the saving. We act on switches for homeowners throughout Co. Westmeath.
What can hold up a re-mortgage?
The two most common causes of delay are outstanding conditions in the new loan offer and issues on the title. Loan conditions such as updated life cover or a fresh valuation are often discovered late. Title issues can include an old mortgage that was repaid but never discharged, a boundary discrepancy on the folio map or planning queries on an extension. We review the loan offer and the title at the start of the file so neither causes a surprise at the end. Homes in Monksland and Bellanamullia sit in Co. Roscommon, so planning records there are held by Roscommon County Council rather than Westmeath County Council.
People Also Ask on Mortgage Athlone and Westmeath
What does buying a house in Athlone cost beyond the price itself?
Stamp duty, legal fees and registration outlays all add to the total. They vary with the price and the property, as our guide to the cost of buying a house in Athlone explains.
What happens to my mortgage when I sell my house?
Your existing loan is repaid from the sale proceeds on closing and the lender then discharges its charge. The rest of the process is covered on our selling a property page.
Can I transfer my home to a family member while it still has a mortgage?
It can be possible, but your lender must consent and may require the loan to be restructured or cleared first. We explain the wider process on our voluntary transfer page.
Is a mortgage on a commercial premises handled differently?
Commercial lending usually involves more detailed checks on leases, planning and how the building is used. Our commercial property page covers what is involved.
What should I do before going sale agreed on my first home?
Securing mortgage approval in principle and choosing a solicitor early both help once you agree a price. Our top tips for purchasing your home set out the other practical steps.
Re-mortgage services across Athlone and Westmeath
Tormeys Solicitors act on re-mortgages, mortgage switches and equity release for homeowners across Athlone, in the estates at Retreat, Summerhill, Coosan and Garrycastle, in the apartments near Athlone Town centre and Golden Island and across the bridge at Monksland and Bellanamullia. We also act for homeowners in Glasson, Moate, Kilbeggan, Ballymore and Mullingar.
Our office is on Castle Street, beside Athlone Castle and a short walk from the Shannon.
Speak to our property team
Contact Tormeys Solicitors about a re-mortgage, a switch of lender or the release of equity in your home. Once you have your loan offer, we will confirm our fee in writing and tell you exactly what we need.
We act on the legal work. We do not sell mortgages.
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