I just bought a flat at auction in Cumberland. Conveyancing is needed. What are my next steps?

Having exchanged you must retain a conveyancing practitioner as a matter of priority as you are facing a fast approaching a drop dead date to complete the conveyancing. All auction property should have an associated legal pack. This will likely include the copy title deeds, local authority and drainage searches. In the case of leasehold property the conveyancing pack may provide a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and associated conveyancing documentation relating to leasehold premises. You need to hand this to the solicitor working for you ASAP. You also need to ensure that your finances are organised to complete on the on the contractual date .

Are all Cumberland Conveyancing Quality Solicitors on the Lloyds conveyancing panel?

Some major banks and building societies now utilise the accreditation scheme as the starting point for Panel approval such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS accreditation however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. Nevertheless,the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitors wishing to remain on their approved list of conveyancing solicitors.

My sealed bid on a house in Cumberland has been agreed to, but there is a chain. The sellers have placed an offer on a flat, but it’s not been accepted yet, and are looking at other properties booked. I have instructed a local conveyancing solicitor in Cumberland. What do I do now? At what point do I apply for the mortgage with RBS?

It is usual to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket too early (mortgage application is in the region of £1k, then survey, Cumberland conveyancing search charges, etc). First, you should ensure that your conveyancing practitioner is on the RBS approved list. Concerning the next steps this very much dictated by the specifics of your case, motivation for this property and on the state of the market. In a buoyant market many purchasers will apply for a home loan with RBS and arrange for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they request their conveyancing practitioner to proceed with the conveyancing in Cumberland.

Will commercial conveyancing searches reveal impending roadworks that may impact a commercial property in Cumberland?

Its becoming the norm that commercial conveyancing solicitors in Cumberland will perform a SiteSolutions Highways report as it reduces the time that conveyancers invest in researching accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Cumberland. The report provides definitive data on the adoption status of roads, footpaths and verges, as well as the implication of traffic schemes and the rights of way surrounding a commercial development sites in Cumberland.

For every commercial conveyancing transaction in Cumberland it is crucial to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. The absence of identifying developments where adoption procedures have not been addressed adequately may result in delays to Cumberland commercial conveyancing deals as well as pose a risk to future plans for the site. These searches are not ordered for domestic conveyancing in Cumberland.

I used Stirling Law a few years past for my conveyancing in Cumberland. I now require my papers however the law firm has closed. What do I do?

You should call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Cumberland of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously retained, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

I am buying a new build house in Cumberland with the aid of help to buy. The builders refused to budge the price so I negotiated 6k of additionals instead. The property agent advised me not to tell my solicitor about the deal as it could jeopardize my mortgage with Birmingham Midshires. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

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.

We are in the midst of selling our flat in Cumberland. Conveyancing is fine but we have been asked to pay an extortionate amount by the landlord. So far we have forked out £250 for a leasehold management information and then a further £134.40 for additional questions supplied by the purchaser's solicitor.

Your lawyer will not have any sway over the level of the bill for this information but the average fee for the information for Cumberland leasehold property is £395. For Cumberland conveyancing sales it is customary for the owner to pay for these charges. The freeholder or their agents are under no statutory obligation to address these questions although many will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices out of proportion to the work involved. Regretfully there is no law that requires capped fees for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are duty bound to supply the information.