My wife and I are purchasing a apartment in Alnmouth. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a lawyer? At some point we will need to put money into their account. What protection do we have from them run away with our monies?

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.

What is the difference between a licensed conveyancer and conveyancing solicitor in Alnmouth

There are many registered licenced Conveyancers in Alnmouth and Solicitor firms in Alnmouth offering conveyancing It is important to make clear that both are supervised by regulatory bodies with both specialising in the legal work in transferring property. The two can conduct other property legal work such as remortgage conveyancing, enfranchisement and transfer of equity conveyancing.

After shopping around on the internet I have found a Alnmouth conveyancer having checked that they are on the Santander conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?

Santander will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Santander will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. Your conveyancing practitioner will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by your Alnmouth postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Santander, you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Alnmouth.

Do I need to pay for insurance to protect me from financial exposure to chancel repairs when purchasing a house in Alnmouth?

Unless a previous purchase of the premises took place after 12 October 2013 you can take it that conveyancing practitioners conducting conveyancing in Alnmouth to continue to recommend a chancel search and or insurance against a claim.

I used Stirling Law a few years ago for my conveyancing in Alnmouth. Now, I need my files however the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?

Do call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracking down your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Alnmouth of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously used, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

How does conveyancing in Alnmouth differ for newly converted properties?

Most buyers of new build residence in Alnmouth contact us having been asked by the developer to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is completed. This is because house builders in Alnmouth tend to purchase the land, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct property lawyers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Alnmouth or who has acted in the same development.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of flats in Alnmouth both have about 50 years remaining on the lease term. should I be concerned?

There are plenty of short leases in Alnmouth. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the value of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage lenders may be unwilling to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional assistance from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this field.

I purchased a 2 bed flat in Alnmouth, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Alnmouth with a long lease are worth £175,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease expires on 21st October 2083

With only 58 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £21,900 and £25,200 plus legals.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.