I'm in the process of changing my domestic loan to a BTL Birmingham Midshires mortgage. The bank has said that I need a solicitor as part of the process. I got in contact with my previous Castleton conveyancing firm who dealt with the legals when I originally purchased the premises. The fee calculation provided of £550 has surprised me as its a refinance than a sale or purchase.

The charges are a bit high. Where you are willing to spend time contrasting quotes you could decrease the fees slightly by perhaps a hundred pounds. That being said, assuming were happy with the legal work the firm offered you mightlive to rue choosing an a cheaper solicitor. If is important to ensure that the conveyancer can also act for Birmingham Midshires. You can use our search tool to choose a Castleton conveyancing firm on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel, which can often include conveyancing solicitors in Castleton.

Are the Castleton conveyancing solicitors identified as being on the Lloyds conveyancing panel, together with their details provided by Lloyds?

Castleton conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Lloyds conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Lloyds directly.

three months have elapsed following my purchase conveyancing in Castleton took place. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £175,000 when infact I paid £160,000. Why the discrepancy?

The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the asset from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.

I opted to have a survey carried out on a property in Castleton in advance of retaining solicitors. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold aspect to the house. My surveyor has said that some lenders will not grant a mortgage on such a home.

It depends who your proposed lender is. Santander has different instructions for example to Halifax. If you e-mail us we can check with the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Castleton. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Castleton to see if the conveyancing costs will increase in light of this.

I am attracted to a two apartments in Castleton both have in the region of forty five years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Castleton is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the value of the property. The majority of buyers and banks, leases with under eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a property with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Castleton conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease. They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I invested in buying a basement flat in Castleton, conveyancing having been completed in 2012. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Comparable properties in Castleton with an extended lease are worth £190,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 yearly. The lease ends on 21st October 2085

With only 61 years unexpired the likely cost is going to range between £19,000 and £22,000 as well as costs.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.