I have given 2 months notice to my existing landlord and must leave my rented property in Ditchling by the end of next month. Conveyancing on my purchase is progressing. Is it possible to complete in 5 weeks as I wish to avoid having to move into temporary accommodation?

The normal practice is not to serve notice for your lease unless exchange of contracts has taken place. Assuming that you have not already done so, notify to your solicitor and ask them to they cajole the other side, try to an acceptable time-line that everyone will aim towards

It is 10 years ago since I purchased my home in Ditchling. Conveyancing solicitors have just been instructed on the sale but I can't locate my deeds. Will this cause complications?

Don’t worry too much. Firstly there is a chance that the deeds will be with the mortgage company or they may be archived with the conveyancers who handled your purchase. Secondly the likelihood is that the property will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to prove you own the property by your conveyancing solicitors acquiring up to date copy of the land registers. The vast majority of conveyancing in Ditchling involves registered property but in the rare situation where your home is unregistered it is more problematic but is resolvable.

I am helping my mother sell her flat in Ditchling. Does the solicitor commission the energy assessment or it is for the owner to coordinate?

Following the abolition of Home Packs, energy assessments became a required component of moving property. An EPC needs to be to hand before the property is advertised. It is not as aspect of the sale process that solicitors ordinarily arrange. Where you are using a Ditchling conveyancing lawyer they may be able to arrange energy performance certificates due to their relationships with reputable Ditchling energy assessors

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

Having for in every practical sense signed on the dotted line you will need to find a conveyancing practitioner soon as you will have a tight a fixed date to complete the property. An auction property will ordinarily have a bespoke legal pack. This should include the copy title deeds, local authority and drainage searches. Where you are dealing with leasehold property the auction papers may include a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and other conveyancing documentation pertinent to a leasehold property. You need to pass this on to the lawyer working for you ASAP. Do make sure that your finances are organised to complete on the on the contractual date .

Intending to buy a apartment in Ditchling. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Building Society if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the UBS conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.

They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Ditchling conveyancing practitioner is on the UBS conveyancing panel.

I'm purchasing my first flat in Ditchling with a mortgage from Platform Home Loans Ltd. The developers would not reduce the price so I negotiated 6k of additionals instead. The house builders rep suggested that I not disclose to my conveyancer about this deal as it may put at risk my loan with Platform Home Loans Ltd. Should I keep quiet?.

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.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Ditchling with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Ditchling can be avoided where you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers’ representatives.
In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s consent? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Ditchling state that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such works. If you dont have the consents to hand you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand. You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check via your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will be unlikely to recommend their client to where the lease term is less than 75 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale. If you have had conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled before the property is marketed. The buyers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is a current dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.

I invested in buying a garden flat in Ditchling, conveyancing was carried out 6 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Similar properties in Ditchling with an extended lease are worth £227,000. The ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2096

With 71 years unexpired the likely cost is going to span between £9,500 and £11,000 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.