My wife and I are purchasing a newly constructed apartment in Cornhill On Tweed and my solicitor is advising me that she has to the bank to disclose incentives from the builder. I am on a tight deadline to exchange and my preference is not to prolong deal. is my lawyer playing by the book?

You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your conveyancer. A precondition to being on a lender panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.

Can you explain why leasehold purchase conveyancing in Cornhill On Tweed is more expensive?

In summary, leasehold conveyancing in Cornhill On Tweed and elsewhere usually necessitates extra work compared to freehold transactions. This includes lease investigation, corresponding with the landlord about the service of required notices, securing up-to-date service charge and management information, securing the freeholder’s consents and reviewing management accounts. The obligations on both the landlord and the tenant in the lease need to be studied by the buyer’s conveyancing team and read from beginning to end – regardless of the fact the lease has passed through many different property solicitors hands since it was first entered into.

Should our conveyancer be asking questions concerning flooding during the conveyancing in Cornhill On Tweed.

Flooding is a growing risk for conveyancers dealing with homes in Cornhill On Tweed. Some people will buy a property in Cornhill On Tweed, completely expectant that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, aside from the physical destruction, where a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, suitable building insurance, or dispose of the property. There are steps that can be taken during the course of a house purchase to forewarn the purchaser.

Lawyers are not best placed to offer advice on flood risk, however there are a numerous searches that may be initiated by the buyer or on a buyer’s behalf which will give them a better understanding of the risks in Cornhill On Tweed. The standard property information forms given to a buyer’s conveyancer (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) incorporates a usual inquiry of the vendor to discover whether the premises has historically flooded. If the property has been flooded in past and is not disclosed by the seller, then a buyer may commence a legal claim for losses as a result of such an inaccurate response. The buyer’s solicitors should also order an environmental search. This should reveal if there is any known flood risk. If so, more detailed investigations will need to be made.

I decided to have a survey carried out on a house in Cornhill On Tweed ahead of instructing solicitors. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold element to the property. The surveyor advised that some mortgage companies may refuse to issue a mortgage on this type of premises.

It varies from the lender to lender. Santander has different requirements for example to Birmingham Midshires. If you e-mail us we can check with the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Cornhill On Tweed. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Cornhill On Tweed from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Cornhill On Tweed can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your solicitors. A buyer’s lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to where the lease term is less than 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale. If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is essential that these are resolved before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where a dispute is unsettled. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over rather than unsettled. If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a re-issued share certificate is often a time consuming process and frustrates many a Cornhill On Tweed conveyancing transaction. If a duplicate share is necessary, do contact the company officers or managing agents (if relevant) for this sooner rather than later.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Cornhill On Tweed - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

It is important to be aware if a new roof is being installed or some other major work is due shortly that will be shared amongst the leaseholders and could well materially impact the level of the maintenance costs or require a specific invoice. Does the lease contain onerous restrictions? The prefered form of lease structure is where the freehold interest is owned by the leaseholders. In this situation the lessees benefit from being in charge if their destiny and notwithstanding that a managing agent is usually employed where the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves.