I'm in the process of swapping over from my existing standard loan to a BTL TSB mortgage. I was told by my financial advisor that I require a conveyancer for this. I spoke to the same Driffield conveyancing practitioner who who completed the conveyancing when I initially acquired the property. The costs illustration supplied of £500 has surprised me as its a remortgage than a sale or purchase.

The estimate does seem a little overpriced. If you are willing to spend time comparing quotes you may be able to shave off some of the expense by perhaps £125. On the other hand, if you were content with the assistance the firm offered you maylive to rue opting for an a cheaper lawyer. Don't forget to enquire the solicitor can represent TSB. Do use our search tool to find a Driffield conveyancing firm on the TSB approved list of lawyers, which can often include conveyancing solicitors in Driffield.

My lawyer in Driffield has never been on on the Leeds Building Society Solicitor Panel. Is it possible for me to continue with my family solicitor notwithstanding that they are excluded from the Leeds Building Society approved list?

Your options are as follows:

1. Complete the purchase with your existing Driffield solicitors but Leeds Building Society will need to use a solicitor on their list of acceptable firms. This will result in additional total conveyancing charges as well as result in delays.
2. Get an alternative lawyer to to deal with the conveyancing, not forgetting to check they are Convince your conveyancer to do everything within their powers to join the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel

I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £195,000 and identified one round the corner in Driffield I like with open areas and transport links nearby, however it only has 51 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Driffield for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a lease with such few years left?

If you need a mortgage the shortness of the lease may be problematic. Discount the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the property for a minimum of 2 years you could request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this matter.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Driffield from the perspective of speeding up the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Driffield can be reduced where you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers’ lawyers.
If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Driffield state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring require a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such alterations. Should you fail to have the paperwork in place you should not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand. Some Driffield leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their solicitors. If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should make sure that you are holding the original share document. Organising a re-issued share certificate is often a time consuming process and frustrates many a Driffield conveyancing deal. Where a duplicate share is required, do contact the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this as soon as possible. You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable double-check by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the lease term is less than 75 years. It is therefore important at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

Driffield Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries before buying

How is the lease structured? Who manages the block?

I am short of a 10% deposit on my house purchase in Driffield , but I am keen proceed. What can I do?

One option is to try and agree a lower deposit. Most property owners will agree to a smaller deposit or even no deposit for a first time buyer or 100% mortgage. Be aware though that if you fail to complete you will still need to hand over a minimum of 10% of the purchase price regardless of how much deposit was agreed.

You can also agree a simultaneous exchange and completion as no deposit is required for this however neither party will be tied in until completion actually takes place and it can be risky if sellers change their mind at the last second