My best friend’s mother is a solicitor. I am hopeful that I'll be able to get friends and family fee for conveyancing, but if not, what kind of fees should I be paying for conveyancing in Christchurch?

It’s prudent to request two or three conveyancing quotes. Do use our search tool on this page. Whilst estimates do contrast greatly but the service one can expect are distinct between solicitors as is true with most professions.

What is the first thing I need to know about purchase conveyancing in Christchurch?

Not many law firms or advisers will tell you this but conveyancing in Christchurch and elsewhere in Dorset is an adversarial process. Put another way, when it comes to conveyancing there exists lots of room for friction between you and other parties involved in the house moving process. For instance, the vendor, selling agent and on occasion a mortgage company. Selecting a lawyer for your conveyancing in Christchurch is a critical decision as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the SOLE party in the legal process whose role it is to act in your legal interests and to protect you.

Every so often a potential adversary will attempt to convince you that it is in your interests to do things their way. For instance, the selling agent may claim to be assisting by claiming that your solicitor is slow. Or your financial adviser may advise you to do take action that is contrary to your lawyers recommendation. You should always trust your lawyer above all other parties when it comes to the legal transfer of property.

The Christchurch conveyancing firm that just started acting on my house acquisition in Christchurch have suddenly shut down. They were on acting for me because I needed a firm on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel and my family Christchurch lawyer was not. I paid them funds in advance. What are my options?

If you have an estate agent involved then let them know immediately so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Most sellers would be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers may be able to help.

I am purchasing my first flat in Christchurch with a loan from Bank of Scotland. The sellers would not move on the amount so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The estate agent advised me not reveal to my lawyer about this side-deal as it would put at risk my loan with the lender. Is this normal?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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.

All being well we will complete the sale of our £375,000 maisonette in Christchurch in 5 days. The managing agents has quoted £324 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Christchurch?

For most leasehold sales in Christchurch conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

Answering pre-contract questions Where consent is required before sale in Christchurch Supplying insurance information Deeds of covenant upon sale Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Christchurch leasehold property is £350. For Christchurch conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to supply answers.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Christchurch - Examples of Questions you should ask before buying

The prefered form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this situation the lessees enjoy control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is frequently employed where the building is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent is directed by the tenants. It would be sensible to discover as much as you can about the managing agents as they will impact your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you are often in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to daily matters like the upkeep of the common parts. Ask other people what they think of their management. Finally, be sure you understand the dates that the maintenance fees are due to the managing agents and precisely what it includes. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments?