Is there a reason why leasehold purchase conveyancing in Billericay is more expensive?

Billericay leasehold conveyancing transactions usually involve additional investigations than freeholds including investigating the Lease, liaising with the Landlord such as serving relevant notices on the Landlord or managing agent, obtaining up-to-date service charge and management information, obtaining Landlord’s consents and reviewing management accounts and formation documents.

I am expecting a AIP from Leeds Building Society this week so we can work out what to offer on a property we like as otherwise we are dependent on web based calculators (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do Leeds Building Society recommend any Billericay solicitors on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel, or is it better to go independently?

You will need to appoint Billericay solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and Leeds Building Society through the process.

I've digested plenty of mortgage guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Billericay solicitor - who is on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. is that correct?

Yorkshire BS will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Yorkshire BS 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 Billericay 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.

Our offer on a detached house in Billericay has been agreed to, but there is a chain. The sellers have offered on on an apartment, but it’s not yet tied up, and are looking at other properties in the pipeline. I have selected a nearby conveyancing solicitor in Billericay. What do I do now? At what point do I apply for the mortgage with Clydesdale?

It is understandable to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket too early (home loan application is approx £1k, then valuation, Billericay conveyancing search charges, etc). First, you should ensure that your conveyancing practitioner is on the Clydesdale approved list. As to the next stages this very much dictated by the specifics of your case, desire for the property and on the state of the market. In a hot market some purchasers would apply for a home loan with Clydesdale and pay for the valuation and only if it was satisfactory would they ask their conveyancer to proceed with the conveyancing in Billericay.

Should our conveyancer be raising enquiries about flooding as part of the conveyancing in Billericay.

Flooding is a growing risk for solicitors carrying out conveyancing in Billericay. Some people will purchase a house in Billericay, fully expectant that at some time, it may be flooded. However, aside from the physical destruction, where a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, satisfactory building insurance, or sell the premises. Steps can be carried out during the course of a property purchase to forewarn the buyer.

Lawyers are not qualified to give advice on flood risk, however there are a various checks that can be initiated by the buyer or on a buyer’s behalf which can figure out the risks in Billericay. The standard property information forms sent to a buyer’s conveyancer (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) includes a standard question of the vendor to find out if the property has suffered from flooding. In the event that flooding has previously occurred which is not disclosed by the seller, then a purchaser may bring a claim for damages as a result of such an inaccurate answer. A purchaser’s lawyers should also order an environmental report. This should indicate whether there is any known flood risk. If so, additional inquiries will need to be carried out.

I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £195,000 and identified one round the corner in Billericay I like with open areas and station in the vicinity, however it's only got 49 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Billericay suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a lease with such few years left?

Should you require a home loan the shortness of the lease will be a potential deal breaker. Discount the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you could ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer about this.

Hoping to buy a property located in Billericay and I am already nervous. I couldn't find anything specific about Billericay. Conveyancing will be needed in due course but do you know about the Billericay area? or perhaps some other tips you can share?

Rather than looking online forget looking online you should go and have a look at Billericay. In the meantime here are some basic statistics that we found