We went with a local solicitor for our conveyancing in Arnside recently. Reviewing the official terms of business I noteI am responsible for fees even if the dealfalls through. Should I ditch them and use a web based solicitor practice who offer no completion no charge conveyancing in Arnside?

It is usually ‘give and take’ in that if "No Completion No Fee" is advertised then the fee levels will tend to be be higher to offset the conveyances that do not go ahead. Do bear in mind that such promotions generally do not cover expenditure for example Arnside conveyancing search expenses.

My fiance and I swapping mortgage lender for our maisonette in Arnside with Aldermore. We have a son 19 who lives with us. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who lives in the flat. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the flat is repossessed. I have a couple of concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Aldermore conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we purchased 3 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this extinguish his rights to inherit the property?

First, rest assured that your Aldermore conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Aldermore. This is solely used to protect Aldermore if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Aldermore had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.

How can we know in advance if a Arnside conveyancing solicitor on the Yorkshire BS panel is any good?

When it comes to conveyancing in Arnside obtaining recommendations is a sensible starting point. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one advertising the lowest fees. We would always suggest that you speak with the solicitor handling your transaction.

I am buying a property in Arnside. A rare aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Nottingham have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?

As you are obtaining a mortgage with Nottingham your lawyer must follow the conveyancing instructions set out in Section two of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Nottingham. The CML Handbook contains minimum provisions for solar panel roof-space leases, and solicitors are required to report to Nottingham where a lease fails to meet these provisions. The requirements relate to the installation of panels on properties countrywide and is not isolated to Arnside.

I currently have a mortgage with RBS for my property in Arnside. Conveyancing was finalised a year ago. Should I wish to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform RBS?

You must advise RBS in advance of renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of RBS’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will permit you to let out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact RBS directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a RBS conveyancing panel solicitor.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £375,000 flat in Arnside in seven days. The managing agents has quoted £312 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Arnside?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Arnside conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

Addressing pre-exchange enquiries Where consent is required before sale in Arnside Copies of the building insurance and schedule Deeds of covenant upon sale Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Arnside leasehold property is £350. For Arnside conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are obliged to supply the information.

Arnside Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

Is anyone aware of any major works on the horizon that could add a premium to the service charges? It is important to be aware if fixing the lift or some other significant cost is coming up that will be shared amongst the leaseholders and could well materially increase the the service costs or necessitate a specific invoice.

I have checked your search tool I can't find the lawyer I was hoping to instruct as being on the lender conveyancing panel. My lawyer has said that they are on the mortgage company approved panel. How can I be sure given that they are not listed on your directory?

Not all firms are yet listed on our lender panel search tool which is still relatively new. Law firms are listing on a daily basis and it is probably the case that your lawyer is on the mortgage company conveyancing lawyer and you should probably take them at their word. Please do feel free to suggest that they completing their listing on our site as it would only cost them £1 a month to list themselves as being on the lender solicitor panel.