As someone clueless as to conveyancing in Biggin Hill what is the number one tip you can impart concerning the legal transfer of property in Biggin Hill

You may not hear this from too many lawyers but conveyancing in Biggin Hill and elsewhere in England and Wales is often a confrontational experience. Put another way, when it comes to conveyancing there is lots of room for confrontation between you and others involved in the transaction. For instance, the vendor, selling agent and on occasion the bank. Selecting a solicitor for your conveyancing in Biggin Hill is a critical decision as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the ONLY person in the process whose interest is to look after your best interests and to protect you.

On occasion a potential adversary will try and persuade you that you should follow their advice. For instance, the selling agent may claim to be assisting by claiming that your solicitor is dragging his heels. Or your mortgage broker may advise you to do something that is against your solicitors guidance. You should always trust your lawyer above all other parties when it comes to the legal transfer of property.

I can see plenty of here concerning conveyancing in Biggin Hill but what is your top tip for choosing the right conveyancer in Biggin Hill

Do not opt for the cheapest Biggin Hill conveyancing quote. You really do get what you pay for when it comes to conveyancing solicitors. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you know exactly what you’ll have to pay in advance.

I'm the sole beneficiary of my late father’s will and I have everything in my name now, including the house in Biggin Hill. Conveyancing formalities meant that the Land Registry date was in September. I now wish to sell up. I understand that there is a Mortgage Lenders 6 month 'rule', meaning my property ownership could be regarded the same way as if I'd bought the property in September. Will no one buy the property for half a year?

The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook obliges solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you could be caught by that. Most lenders would take a pragmatic view as this requirement is principally there to capture subsales or the quick reselling of properties.

Is there a list of HSBC panel conveyancers in Biggin Hill on the Building Society Association’s Website?

Unfortunately not yet. There is no such facility on the Council of Mortgage Lenders or Building Society Association sites. Very few mortgage companies make their panel listings visible online. Where you are seeking to appoint a Biggin Hill solicitor on the HSBC please use our tool.

I'm purchasing a new build house in Biggin Hill with a mortgage from Accord Mortgages Ltd. The developers refused to budge the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of fixtures and fittings instead. The estate agent suggested that I not to tell my lawyer about this deal as it would affect my mortgage with the lender. Is this normal?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

We are 3 weeks into a freehold purchase having been recommend to conveyancers by the estate agent to do our conveyancing in Biggin Hill. I am not happy. Could you help me find new conveyancers?

They would need to be very bad to suggest changing them. Has your mortgage been generated? In the event that it has you will need to advise them of the new contact details and ensure the mortgage documents are re-issued. The conveyancer should be on the mortgage company approved list to avoid added costs and frustration. That should be your first question of the new lawyers. The search tool will help you find a lender approved lawyer for your conveyancing in Biggin Hill

I am looking at a couple of apartments in Biggin Hill both have in the region of fifty years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the value of the lease deteriorates and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you seek professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena.

I inherited a ground-floor 1960’s flat in Biggin Hill. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the premium due for the purchase of the freehold?

Where there is a missing freeholder or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the LVT to arrive at the amount due.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Biggin Hill property is 1 Southlands Court Southlands Road in September 2013. The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal determined that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 was £30,541 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 50.57 years.