My lawyer has uncovered a a legal deficiency with the lease for the flat we are buying in Southam. The seller’s lawyers have suggested title insurance as a solution. We are content with insurance and will pay for it. Our solicitor has advised that he must ensure that the bank is willing to move forward with this solution. Who is the client here, us or the bank?

Regardless of the fact that you have a mortgage offer from the mortgage company does not mean to say that the property will meet their provisions for the purposes of a mortgage. Your lawyer has to ensure that the lease has to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook provisions. You and the bank are the client. The appropriate lender specifications have to be complied with.

We are purchasing a apartment in Southam. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a solicitor? On completion day we will need to put our life savings into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our deposit?

Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.

I am helping my niece sell her flat in Southam. Does the conveyancing solicitor order the energy assessment or it is for the seller to coordinate?

After the demise of Home Packs, EPC’s was maintained a mandatory element of selling a house. An EPC needs to be to hand in advance of the property being put on the market. It is not something that lawyers normally organise. Where you are using a Southam conveyancing practitioner they may help arrange energy performance certificates due to their contacts with long established local energy assessors

When it comes to mortgage companies such as Leeds Building Society, do Southam conveyancing practitioners incur a yearly amount to be on the list of approved solicitors?

We are not aware of any bank fees to be on their panel, although some do charge an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.

I'm buying my first flat in Southam with a mortgage from Skipton Building Society. The developers would not reduce the amount so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The estate agent suggested that I not to tell my solicitor about the side-deal as it may impact my mortgage with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

In my capacity as executor for the will of my grandfather I am disposing of a house in Neath but reside in Southam. My conveyancer (approximately 260 miles awayhas requested that I sign a stat dec before the transaction finalising. Could you suggest a conveyancing solicitor in Southam who can attest this legal document for me?

Technically speaking you should not be required to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily any notary public or solicitor will do regardless of whether they are Southam based

I am hoping to sign contracts shortly on a garden flat in Southam. Conveyancing solicitors assured me that they report fully next week. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Southam should include some of the following:

You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions Setting out your rights in relation to the communal areas in the block.E.G., does the lease provide for a right of way over a path or hallways? What the implications are if you are in breach of your lease terms? Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?

I bought a garden flat in Southam, conveyancing was carried out in 2008. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable flats in Southam with an extended lease are worth £190,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2086

With just 62 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £17,100 and £19,800 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.