Unfortunately I am unable to travel far from Bodfari. Is there a reason why all Bodfari lawyers aren't included on all mortgage company panels?

As unjust as it may seem for mortgage companies to limit who can act for them, from the public’s or lawyer’s viewpoint, the flip side is that lending institutions are increasingly anxious and consider it crucial to defend themselves against illegal activities. As a consequence of this concern lenders are limiting their conveyancing panel to a size that they are happy to control.

Can the conveyancing solicitors identified via your search tool perform conveyancing in Bodfari by way of an attended exchange?

We do have a number of conveyancing experts who can conduct one day exchanges. Do contact us to receive a costs illustration and details as to dates.

Forgive me if this question is silly but I am unseasoned as a 1st time purchaser of a ground floor flat in Bodfari. Do I collect the keys to the house on the completion date from my conveyancer? If so, I will instruct a local conveyancing solicitor in Bodfari?

On the day of completion you will not be required to go to the conveyancers office in Bodfari. Conveyancing lawyers for you will electronically transfer the completion advance to the seller's solicitors, and once they have received this, you should be able to collect the keys from the selling Agents and move into your new home. Usually this occurs between 1 and 3pm.

We have agreed to purchase a house in Bodfari. A rare aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Solicitors conducting should look into this right? Will my lender Virgin Money be concerned?

As your lender is Virgin Money your lawyer must comply with the formal instructions contained in Part two of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Virgin Money. The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook stipulates minimum specifications for solar panel roof-space leases, and property lawyers are required to report to Virgin Money where a lease fails to satisfy these requirements. The conditions relate to the installation of panels on properties nationwide and is not isolated to Bodfari.

My fiancee and I are at the point of looking at houses in Bodfari and I am about to put in an offer. Should I already have a lawyer appointed at this stage? I intend to finance via a home loan with Barclays.

It would be prudent to start your search sooner rather than later. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and forward their details on to the estate agent. Given that you are taking out a mortgage with Barclays, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the Barclays conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.

I have a 4 bedroom Victorian house in Bodfari. Conveyancing lawyer acted for me and Platform Home Loans Ltd. I did a free Land Registry search last week and there are a couple of entries: the first freehold, the second leasehold under the matching address. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?

You should assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Bodfari and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they sell they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with mortgage companies. You can also check the position with your conveyancing solicitor who conducted the conveyancing.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Bodfari. Conveyancing and HSBC Bank mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in Bodfari who acted for me is not around. Any advice?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Bodfari conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that regardless, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Bodfari Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

How long is the Lease? What prohibitions exist in the Bodfari Lease? Most Bodfari leasehold apartments will incur a service charge for maintenance of the building set on behalf of the freeholder. Where you buy the property you will have to meet this contribution, usually periodically accross the year. This can differ from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built buildings. In all probability there will be a rentcharge to be met annual, ordinarily this is not a significant figure, say approximately £25-£75 but you need to enquire as on occasion it could be many hundreds of pounds.