I am not in a position to travel far from Bridgnorth. What is the rationale as to why all Bridgnorth property lawyers aren't included on all bank panels?

Mortgage Companies tend to impose restrictions on either the type or the number of conveyancing solicitors on their panel. Frequent examples of such criteria being that the organisation needs to have two or more partners. In addition to restricting the nature of firm, some building societies decided to reduce the size of their panel they permit to represent them. You should note that building societies have no responsibility for the accuracy of service provided by any Bridgnorth lawyer on their approved list. Mortgage fraud was the primary trigger for the rationalisation of solicitor panels a few years ago notwithstanding that there are opposing thoughts concerning whether solicitors sat at the center of that fraud. Statistics published by HMLR reveal that thousands of law organisations only conduct one or two conveyances a year. Those supporting conveyancing panel cuts ask why law firms should have claim to be listed on a conveyancing panel when clearly property law is not their primary expertise?

Can I be sure that the Bridgnorth conveyancing solicitor on the Nationwide panel is any good?

When it comes to conveyancing in Bridgnorth getting recommendations is a sensible start. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one which is cheap as chips. We would always recommend that you speak with the solicitor conducting your conveyancing.

The mortgage over my property is with Leeds Building Society for my property in Bridgnorth. Conveyancing has been completed a year ago. In the event that I decide to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Leeds Building Society?

Your original mortgage agreement with Leeds Building Society will provide that you need their approval prior to letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Leeds Building Society’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies 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 Leeds Building Society directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel firm.

I had an offer accepted on a house in Bridgnorth on 2/1/2019, valuation was booked 3 days after, all came back fine. Conveyancer instructed, so all that was missing was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to Lloyds and chasing them on my offer, I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the Lloyds conveyancing panel. Are Lloyds entitled to hold back the Mortgage pending the lawyer being on the approved list?

A lender would not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Lloyds to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the Lloyds conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.

Me and my brother purchased a terraced Victorian property in Bridgnorth. Conveyancing lawyer represented me and Lloyds TSB Bank. I did a free Land Registry search last week and there are a couple of entries: one for freehold, the second leasehold with the matching address. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?

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

I am purchasing my first flat in Bridgnorth with the aid of help to buy. The sellers refused to move on the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of extras instead. The estate agent told me not disclose to my lawyer about the deal as it would jeopardize my loan with the lender. Is this normal?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have since discovered that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Bridgnorth. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Bridgnorth ?

Most houses in Bridgnorth are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area who can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are purchasing in Bridgnorth so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Bridgnorth conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor should appraise you on the various issues.

I purchased a studio flat in Bridgnorth, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable flats in Bridgnorth with an extended lease are worth £216,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease ceases on 21st October 2087

With only 68 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.