IfI was to acquire a freehold homein Aughton mortgage fee and have no survey and no conveyancing searches how much could I expect to have to pay for conveyancing in Aughton?

Any savings you would make would be limited to the costs for searches. Your solicitor is required to do the vast majority of work - money laundering, correspond with the vendors lawyer, stamp duty submission, register the property etc. You might save a bit for them not needing to register a mortgage however it won't be meaningful.

It is 10 years ago since I bought my property in Aughton. Conveyancing solicitors have just been appointed on the sale but I am unable to find my deeds. Will this cause complications?

You need not be too concerned. First there is a possibility that the deeds will be kept by the mortgage company or they could be in the possession of the solicitor who acted in the purchase. Secondly in most cases the title will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to prove you own the property by your conveyancing lawyers obtaining current official copies of the land registers. Almost all conveyancing in Aughton relates to registered property but in the rare situation where your home is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is not insurmountable.

Have just purchased a repossessed house at auction in Aughton. Conveyancing is required. What are my next steps?

Given that you are now legally committed yourself to purchase you must choose a conveyancing solicitor quickly as you now have a pending a drop dead date to complete the conveyancing. All auction property will ordinarily have a corresponding auction set of papers. This should include most,if not all of the paperwork that your conveyancer will need. In the case of leasehold premises the auction papers may provide a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and other conveyancing documentation relating to a leasehold property. You should give this to your appointed conveyancing solicitor as soon as possible. You also need to ensure that that you have the requisite funding in place to complete the transaction on the set completion date.

I'm the sole recipient of my late father’s will and I have everything in my name now, including the house in Aughton. Conveyancing formalities meant that the Land Registry date was in July. I plan to dispose of the house. I understand that there is a CML 6 month 'rule', meaning my proprietorship may be regarded the same way as if I'd bought the house in July. Is the property unsalable for six months?

The CML handbook requires conveyancers to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." By the strict wording you may be caught by that. Some banks would take a pragmatic view as this requirement is primarily there to identify subsales or the flipping of properties.

I've read lots of mortgage guides, I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Aughton solicitor - who is on the UBS conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?

UBS will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually UBS 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. You may wish to consider appointing your own Aughton surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.

I am 14 days into a leasehold purchase having been referred to a firm by the estate agent to execute conveyancing in Aughton. I am not happy. Can you you assist me in finding new conveyancers?

A conveyancer would have to be very poor in order to consider replacing them. Has the mortgage offer been generated? If so you must advise them of the replacement solicitor and have the offer are re-sent. The solicitor ideally should be on the banks approved list to avoid escalating charges and delays. That should be your starting point. Our search tool can assist you in finding a bank approved conveyancer for your conveyancing in Aughton

Last April I purchased a leasehold house in Aughton. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I bought a studio flat in Aughton, conveyancing was carried out in 1999. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar flats in Aughton with an extended lease are worth £181,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 invoiced every year. The lease ends on 21st October 2076

With 51 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £30,400 and £35,200 as well as professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.