Some advice if I may. My Bingley solicitor is informing me me that she is duty bound toorder Bingley conveyancing searches resulting from the fact thatthe firm are on the Nat Westconveyancing panel. Do I not have a choice here?

You have limited options available to you. Given that you are taking out a loan with a lender your solicitor has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the CML Conveyancing Handbook. Your conveyancing practitioner would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of your lender’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to follow the CML Handbook specifications . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Bingley conveyancing searches.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up during conveyancing in Bingley?

Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Bingley. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and identified one near me in Bingley I like with a park and transport links nearby, however it only has 51 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Bingley in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a lease with such few years left?

If you need a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term will be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you could ask them to start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this matter.

Should I be concerned by estate agents that I am dealing with are encouraging me to use a web based conveyancing firm as opposed to a local Bingley conveyancing firm?

As with lots of professional services, often input from connections can be most helpful. But there are numerous players in a conveyancing matter; estate agents, mortgage brokers and mortgage companies may put forward solicitors to use. Sometimes these lawyers might be known to one of the organisations as experts in their field, but sometimes there exists a financial incentive behind the recommendation. You are at liberty to choose your own conveyancer. However, bear in mind that most mortgage providers specify a panel list of solicitors you are obliged to use for the lender aspect of your home move.

There are only 68 years remaining on my lease in Bingley. I now want to get lease extension but my landlord is absent. What should I do?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the magistrate. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you have used your best endeavours to track down the freeholder. On the whole an enquiry agent should be useful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a conveyancer in relation to devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Bingley.

I purchased a leasehold flat in Bingley, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2006. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding properties in Bingley with a long lease are worth £185,000. The ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease finishes on 21st October 2085

With just 60 years left to run the likely cost is going to be between £20,000 and £23,000 plus costs.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.