My wife and I are planning to acquire a house in Alderley Edge and are in fact using a Alderley Edge conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with a view to exchanging next week. have this evening contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Alderley Edge lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?

When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is standard for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Alderley Edge solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.

I am buying a garden flat in Alderley Edge. How practical is it for me to do the conveyancing?

Leaving aside the complexities and merits of DIY conveyancing in Alderley Edge you will have to appoint a solicitor on your lender's conveyancing panel to look after their interests. Most people therefore find it easier to let the solicitor act for them and the lender. Furthermore there is minimal cost savings to be made in you doing conveyancing for yourself and another lawyer conducting the conveyancing for the lender. Please feel free to use the search tool to find a lawyer on your lender panel in Alderley Edge.

I opted to have a survey completed on a property in Alderley Edge ahead of appointing lawyers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold aspect to the house. Our surveyor has said that some lenders tend refuse to grant a loan on a flying freehold property.

It varies from the lender to lender. HSBC has different instructions from Nationwide. If you contact us we can check with the appropriate lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Alderley Edge. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Alderley Edge to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.

I have recently realised that I have 68 years remaining on my lease in Alderley Edge. I now wish to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you have made all reasonable attempts to track down the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent may be helpful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document to be accepted by the court as proof that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer both on investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Alderley Edge.

Alderley Edge Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

The best form of lease arrangement is if the freehold reversion is in the ownership of the leaseholders. In this arrangement the tenants benefit from control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is usually employed where it is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders. How is the lease structured?

I'm buying a flat in Alderley Edge. I have found my conveyancer's company on the Law Society's list, but I can't locate my lawyer's name on the list. Is this a big problem?

Not every individual in the law firm must be listed by the regulator. As long there is someone qualified to 'oversee' the conveyancing, the actual day-to-day activity can be conducted by unqualified staff.