It is 10 years ago since I purchased my property in Clifton. Conveyancing lawyers have recently been instructed on the sale but I can't locate the title documents. Will this cause complications?

You need not be too concerned. First there is a chance that the deeds will be kept by the lender or they could be in the possession of the solicitor who acted in the purchase. Secondly in most cases the property will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to prove you are the registered owner by your conveyancing solicitors procuring current official copies of the land registers. The vast majority of conveyancing in Clifton involves registered property but in the rare situation where your home is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is resolvable.

Do the Building Society Association intend to launch a online directory to list firms on the Melton Mowbray Building Society conveyancing panel for instance in Clifton?

We have not been informed any intention on the part of the BSA to develop such a search facility.

How do I identify a Clifton law firm on the Barclays Direct conveyancing panel? I am a keen cyclist and am prepared to travel upto 20miles to meet the solicitor.

You can use the tool on this website. Please choose the mortgage company and your location and you will see a number of Clifton conveyancing lawyers based on proximity. We have detailed some Clifton conveyancing firms at the bottom of this page and you can telephone them to check if they are on the Barclays Direct member panel

I am looking at a couple of flats in Clifton both have approximately forty five years unexpired on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Clifton is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the premises. The majority of buyers and banks, leases with less than 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises 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 Clifton 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. You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new 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.

Clifton Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries before buying

Generally speaking the outlay for major works tend not to be built into the maintenance charges, albeit that a few managing agents in Clifton ask leaseholders to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for major works. What is the annual maintenance fee and ground rent? Make sure you find out if there are any onerous prohibitions in the lease. By way of example plenty of leases prohibit pets being permitted in in a block in Clifton. If you like the flatin Clifton yet your dog can’t make the move with you then you have a very hard compromise.

My step-son is just in the process of moving home, the home loan was agreed last week in principle. After the seller agreed the offer on the flat we telephoned the lender to issue the formal offer. We were shocked to learn that banks do not accept all property lawyer, they need to be on their approved list, is this right?

Lenders ordinarily imposes restrictions either the type or the number of conveyancing solicitors on their panel. Typical examples of such restriction(s) being that a firm must have two or more partners. In addition to restricting the type of firm, some have decided to limit the number of firms they use to represent them. You should note that lenders have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any Clifton lawyer on their panel. Mortgage fraud was a key driver in the rationalisation of conveyancing panels a few years ago and whilst there are differing views about the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Statistics from the Land Registry reveal that thousands of law firms only carry out one or two conveyances a year. Those supporting conveyancing panel cuts ask why law firms should have the right to be on a Lender panel when clearly, conveyancing is not their speciality. To put it another way; would you want a conveyancing solicitor to represent you if you were charged with a crime? Unlikely.