The owners of the property we are looking to purchase are using a conveyancing solicitor in Booker who has suggested a lock out agreement with a down payment of 5k. Is it wise to enter into such agreements?

Lock out agreements are contracts binding a property vendor and purchaser granting the buyer a ‘clear field’ to purchase the property within an agreed time frame. Essentially, an exclusivity is a document specifying that you will receive a contract at a later date which is the contract for the actual sale. It is generally utilised for buyer confidence though in some cases, the vendor may stand to benefit from such agreements as well. There are many pros and cons to using them but you should to check with your lawyer but note that it may end up incurring extra in conveyancing fees. In light of these reasons these contracts are avoided in relation to conveyancing in Booker.

Do the Building Society Association intend to launch a search tool with a view to to identify solicitors on the Melton Mowbray Building Society conveyancing panel for instance in Booker?

We are not aware of any intention on the part of the BSA to develop such a register.

I completed on my flat on 9 November and my personal details are still not on the land registry website. Need I be worried? My conveyancing solicitor in Booker advises it should be recorded inside ten days. Are titles in Booker particularly slow to register?

There is nothing unique when it comes to conveyancing in Booker registration formalities. Rather than based on location, timeframes can vary depending on who lodges the application, whether there are errors and if the Land registry need to notify any third persons or bodies. At present in the region of 80% of submission are fully addressed within two weeks but occasionally there can be protracted hold-ups. Registration is effected after the new owner has moved in to the premises thus an expedited registration is not usually primary concern yet where it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your solicitor must communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for the application to be prioritised.

Back In 2000, I bought a leasehold house in Booker. Conveyancing and Barclays mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing solicitor in Booker who acted for me is not around. What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a Booker conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I invested in buying a 1st floor flat in Booker, conveyancing was carried out 5 years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Equivalent properties in Booker with a long lease are worth £227,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease ends on 21st October 2098

With just 72 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

We are about to purchasing a flat in Booker. Conveyancing is not complete but we would like keep our transaction price confidential from the likes of Nestoria. How can this be done?

HM Land Registry by statute are obliged to specify price sold data on the official title for residential properties countrywide which includes properties in Booker. The Title Register is a public document, so the Land Registry would be breaching their statutory duty excluded specific properties such as your property in Booker.

You can make a request of HMLR to hide the price paid data but the response will be in the negative.