Are all Toddington Conveyancing Quality Solicitors on the Aldermore conveyancing list of approved practices?

Some major banks and building societies now utilise the accreditation scheme as the kick off point for Panel approval such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS membership however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for firms wishing to remain on their panels.

I am expecting a DIP from Coventry BS this week so we can work out what to offer on a property we like as otherwise we only have online calculators to go by (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do Coventry BS recommend any Toddington solicitors on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel, or is it better to find our own lawyer?

You will need to appoint Toddington solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and Coventry BS through the process.

After much negotiation I have agreed a price on an apartment in Toddington. My financial adviser recommended their conveyancers. I paid an on account payment of £200. A couple of days later, the conveyancing practitioner contacted me to say that they were not on the Skipton conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?

You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Skipton panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.

I require fast conveyancing in Toddington as I am under a deadline to exchange contracts inside 4 weeks. A mortgage is not required. Is it possible to decline from having conveyancing searches to save fees and time?

As you are are a mortgage free buyer you are at free not to have searches conducted although no law firm would recommend that you don't. Drawing on years of experience of conveyancing in Toddington the following are examples of issues that can arise and therefore impact future saleability: Refused Planning Applications, Overdue Fees, Overdue Grants, Road Schemes,...

The deeds to my home are lost. The lawyers who handled the conveyancing in Toddington 10 years ago are no longer around. What do I do?

Gone are the days when you need to hold title deeds to establish that you are the owner of your registered land or property, given that the Land Registry hold details of all registered land or property electronically.

In what way does the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 affect my commercial offices in Toddington and how can you help?

The 1954 Act gives security of tenure to business lessees, giving them the right to make a request to court for a continuation of occupancy at the end of an expired lease. There are certain specified grounds that a landlord can refrain from granting a lease renewal and the rules are complicated. Fees are different for commercial conveyancing. Toddington is one of the many areas of the UK in which the firms we work with are located

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Toddington with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Toddington can be avoided if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s consent? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Toddington state that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord approving such works. If you fail to have the approvals to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor in the first instance. You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to verify this via your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 80 years. It is therefore essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale. If there is a history of any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may need to swallow your pride and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled. The majority of freeholders or managing agents in Toddington charge for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Toddington.

Toddington Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider before buying

How many years are left on the lease? Is anyone aware of any major works anticipated that could increase the maintenance fees? Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments?