Is the fact that my solicitor in Burnham is not listed on my bank's conveyancing panel that there is a problem with the standard of his work?

It would not be wise to jump to that conclusion. There are all sorts of perfectly plausible explanations. Just recently a report by the solicitors regulator revealed 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The most common reasons for removal are: (1) low volume of transactions (2) the solicitor is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. Where you are concerned you should contact the Burnham conveyancing firm and enquire why they are no longer on the approved list for your bank.

The deeds to my house are lost. The solicitors who did the conveyancing in Burnham 5 years ago are no longer around. Will I be able to sell the house?

You no longer need to hold title official documentation to establish that you are the registered proprietor of land or premises, as the Land Registry hold details of all registered land or property electronically.

Just had an offer accepted on a new build flat in Burnham. Conveyancing is necessary evil 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 conveyancing.

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

Please provide evidence that the form of Lease proposed has been approved by the Land Registry. 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. Will the freehold then be transferred for a nominal consideration (not exceeding £100) to the Management Company? Where there is an Undertaking being granted there is the risk of forfeiture of the Headlease subject to relief if one or more of the Underlessees are willing to accept the original Head Lessee’s obligations as otherwise relief will be denied to the Underlessees. The only alternatives are the Head Lessor agreeing not to forfeit the Headlease or the Head Lessee guaranteeing to the Underlessees that it will not be in breach of the Headlease. The Lease must contain a provision on behalf of the Vendor to pay the service charges in respect of unoccupied units in order to ensure that all services can be provided.

In scouring the world wide web for the phrase conveyancing in Burnham it brings up many property lawyersin the area. With so much choice what is the best way to find the right solicitor for the sale of my house?

The preferential way of choosing a suitable conveyancer is via personal referral, so seek the counsel of friends and family who have purchased a property in Burnham or a reputable estate agent or financial adviser. Costs for conveyancing in Burnham differ, so it's sensible to secure a minimum of three costs illustrations from different law firms. Make sure that you clarify that the fees are fixed.

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Burnham conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Burnham conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggest that you make enquires with several firms including non Burnham conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions might be useful:

If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason? Can they put you in touch with clients in Burnham who can give a testimonial?

Burnham Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries before buying

The prefered form of lease arrangement is where the freehold title is owned by the leaseholders. In this scenario the tenants benefit from control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is often retained where the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments?