We are planning to acquire a house and need a conveyancing solicitor in Brighton who is on the Principality conveyancing panel. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a firm?

Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Principality . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in Brighton.

Our lender has recommended solicitors on their panel based in Brighton but I would rather choose a conveyancing lawyer in Brighton or nearer to where I live. Can you assist?

The minority of Brighton conveyancing firms are listed all banks conveyancing panel. Do make the most of our find an approved solicitor tool to locate a Brighton conveyancing solicitor on the on the lender panel.

I have todayfound out that Arc property Solicitors have closed. They carried out my conveyancing in Brighton for a purchase of a leasehold flat 9 months ago. How can I check that my home is not still registered in the name of the previous owner?

The quickest method to see if the property is registered to you, you can make a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Brighton conveyancing specialists.

How does conveyancing in Brighton differ for newly converted properties?

Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in Brighton come to us having been asked by the housebuilder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the property is constructed. This is because house builders in Brighton tend to buy the real estate, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancing solicitors as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are accustomed to new build conveyancing in Brighton or who has acted in the same development.

I am employed by a reputable estate agent office in Brighton where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Brighton conveyancing firms. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

Brighton Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

The answer will be important as a) areas could cause problems in the building as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate where services are not paid for b) if the tenants have a dispute with the managing agents you will wish to know about it It is important to be aware whether fixing the lift or some other significant cost is coming up that will be shared by the tenants and will dramatically impact the level of the service charges or require a specific invoice. The best form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the lessees have being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is usually retained where it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves.