My solicitor has discovered a a legal deficiency with the lease for the apartment we are buying in Bredbury. The seller’s lawyers have offered title insurance as a workaround. We are content with insurance and will cover the costs. Our conveyancer has advised that he must be satisfied that the lender is happy with this solution. Who is the client here, us or the lender?

The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the potential for a conflict of interest, you and the mortgage company are the client. Your property lawyer must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects with the lease so that the bank can be afforded the opportunity to check with their valuer as to the extent that the value of the property is affected. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your property lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.

We are getting the release of further monies on our mortgage from Skipton as we intend to carry out renovations to our house in Bredbury. Are we obliged to select a high street Bredbury solicitor on the Skipton conveyancing panel to deal with the paperwork?

Skipton don't usually appoint firms on their approved list of lawyers to deal with the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Skipton panel.

The mortgage over my property is with Barclays for my property in Bredbury. Conveyancing was finalised 12 months ago. In the event that I decide to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Barclays?

You must advise Barclays before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Barclays’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Barclays will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Barclays directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Barclays conveyancing panel solicitor.

At last I have had an offer on a maisonette in Bredbury accepted, the vendors do nevertheless have a tied purchase. The vendors have offered on a property, however it’s not yet agreed to, and are looking at other flats in the pipeline. I have instructed a high street conveyancing solicitor in Bredbury. What should be my next step? When do I get the mortgage application with UBS started?

It is usual to have anxieties where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur expenses too early (home loan application is approx £1k, then survey, Bredbury conveyancing search charges, etc). First, you should check that your property lawyer is on the UBS conveyancing panel. Regarding the subsequent stages this very much dictated by the circumstances of your transaction, attraction to the property and on the state of the market. During a buoyant market some purchasers would apply for the mortgage with UBS and arrange for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they ask their conveyancer to proceed with searches.

Will our solicitor be making enquiries concerning flooding during the conveyancing in Bredbury.

The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for lawyers conducting conveyancing in Bredbury. There are those who purchase a house in Bredbury, fully aware that at some time, it may be flooded. However, leaving to one side the physical destruction, if a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, satisfactory building insurance, or sell the premises. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.

Lawyers are not qualified to give advice on flood risk, but there are a various searches that can be initiated by the buyer or on a buyer’s behalf which can give them a better understanding of the risks in Bredbury. The conventional set of information given to a buyer’s lawyer (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) incorporates a usual question of the vendor to find out if the property has historically flooded. If flooding has previously occurred which is not disclosed by the owner, then a buyer could bring a legal claim for losses as a result of such an misleading answer. The purchaser’s lawyers will also carry out an enviro report. This will higlight if there is any known flood risk. If so, further investigations should be carried out.

About to purchase a new build apartment in Bredbury. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build legal work.

Set out below are examples of a few leasehold new build questions that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Bredbury

If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. Investor purchasers must be able to freely grant unsecured tenancies at market rents without requiring any consents. Please supply evidence that the form of Lease proposed has been approved by the Land Registry. The Vendor must covenant to keep unsold units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore.

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Bredbury. Before diving in I would like to find out the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Bredbury - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title. For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I acquired a split level flat in Bredbury, conveyancing having been completed April 2003. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Comparable flats in Bredbury with an extended lease are worth £175,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease ceases on 21st October 2083

With only 58 years unexpired the likely cost is going to span between £23,800 and £27,400 plus professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. You should 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 you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.