We were just about to exchange contracts for a property in Penistone. We have hit a stumbling block. The loan offer with Nationwide Building Society runs out on 4/7/2024 but the owners are suggesting a completion date of 8/7/2024. Is it possible to extend the loan offer?

The best person to deal with your question is your lawyer who will calculate if he or she is should be discussing with the mortgage company, owner’s lawyers, property agents or conceivably all three taking into account the history of your house move to date.

The Penistone conveyancing firm that I recently instructed on my house acquisition in Penistone have suddenly shut down. They were on acting for me because I needed a firm on the Co-operative conveyancing panel and my previous Penistone lawyer was not. I sent them a cheque for two hundred pounds in advance. What are my options?

Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then let them know straight away so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to the problems encountered. Most sellers would be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Co-operative conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers may be able to help.

My bid for a property was accepted at auction in Penistone. Conveyancing is needed. What are my next steps?

Given that you are now exchanged you must hire the services of a conveyancing lawyer soon as you are facing a pending a fixed date to complete the transaction. All auction property will ordinarily have a bespoke legal set of papers. This will likely include evidence of title and search results. If you have purchased leasehold property the conveyancing papers should include a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and other conveyancing paperwork pertinent to a leasehold property. You must hand this to your appointed conveyancing solicitor at the earliest opportunity. You also need to ensure that your finances are in place to complete on the on the contractual date .

Forgive me if this question is silly but I am unexperienced as a 1st time buyer of a garden flat in Penistone. Do I receive the keys to the property on completion from my solicitor? If this is the case, I will instruct a High Street conveyancing solicitor in Penistone?

On the day of completion you will not be required to attend the conveyancers office in Penistone. Conveyancing lawyers for you will transfer the purchase money to the owner’s lawyers, and shortly after the monies have arrived, you will be able to pick up the keys from the Estate Agents and move into your new home. This tends to happen early afternoon.

I am currently in the process of buying my council flat in Penistone. I have a mortgage offer with Co-operative. Conveyancing is new to me. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should use one. Any advice?

It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with Co-operative, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Co-operative conveyancing panel.

I have todaybecome aware that Stirling Law have closed. They carried out my conveyancing in Penistone for a purchase of a leasehold apartment 9 months ago. How can I check that the property is registered correctly in the name of the former proprietor?

The quickest way to check if the property is registered to you, you can make a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Penistone conveyancing specialists.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Penistone. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

Penistone Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries Prior to buying

You will want to discover as much as you can about the managing agents as they will either make your life much easier or much more difficult. Being a leasehold owner you are frequently at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to every day issues such as the tidiness of the common parts. Ask other people what they think of their service. On a final note, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the managing agents and specifically what it includes. It would be wise to find out if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For example it is reasonably common in Penistone leases that pets are not allowed in in a block in Penistone. If you love the apartmentin Penistone yet your cat is not allowed to make the move with you then you will be presented with a hard compromise. Please note that where the lease has no more than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the salability of the apartment. It is worth checking with your lender that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. A short lease means that you will probably require a lease extension at some point and it is worth finding out how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you will need to own the property for a couple of years before you are entitled to carry out a lease extension.