When can the exchange of contracts take place for sale conveyancing in Burnham and do I need to be at the lawyers office?

If you are near to our conveyancing solicitors in Burnham you are invited in to sign contracts. However, the law practices we recommend supply countrywide coverage for conveyancing and give as equally diligent and professional a job for you when dealing with you by post or email. The signing of the sale agreement is not the important part. Signing on the dotted line is just a prerequisite for the conveyancer to exchange contracts at the appropriate time, which is ordinarily shortly after signing. The exchange process is nowadays normally dealt with by telephone and can be very rapid, although where a long "chain" is in play, since the process requires the relevant party's solicitor (not necessarily a conveyancing solicitor in Burnham)to be in the office at the appropriate time.

I am close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our property in Burnham and according to the buyers it appears that there is a risk of it being built land that was not decontaminated. A local conveyancer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the buyers are using a national conveyancing firm as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Burnham. We have lived in Burnham for six years we know of no issue. Should we get in touch with our local Authority to seek clarification need.

It would appear that you have a conveyancing lawyer currently acting for you. What do they say? You need to enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same sickness)

I am looking for a ground for flat up to £235,500 and found one close by in Burnham I like with amenity areas and station in the vicinity, however it's only got 51 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Burnham suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a lease with such few years left?

Should you need a mortgage the shortness of the lease may be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer about this.

We're new on the property ladder - had an offer accepted, but the agent told us that the vendor will only go ahead if we appoint the agent's preferred lawyers as they need a ‘quick sale’. My instinct tells me that we should use a family solicitor with experience of conveyancing in Burnham

It is unlikely the sellers are behind this. If they want ‘a quick sale', turning down a motivated buyer is not the way to achieve this. Try to communicate with the sellers directly and make sure they comprehend that (a)you are motivated buyers (b)you are excited to move forward, with mortgage lined up © you are unencumbered (d) you wish to move quickly (e)however you intend to use your own,trusted Burnham conveyancing solicitors - not the ones that will give their estate agent a commission or hit his conveyancing figures pre-set by senior management.

What makes a Burnham lease unacceptable for security purposes?

Leasehold conveyancing in Burnham is not unique. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

Insurance obligations Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property

You will encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Yorkshire Building Society, Skipton Building Society, and Barclays Direct all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

I purchased a split level flat in Burnham, conveyancing formalities finalised February 1996. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Burnham with an extended lease are worth £206,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 per annum. The lease ends on 21st October 2091

With only 66 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £12,400 and £14,200 as well as costs.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional 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.