Please help. My Ely conveyancer is assuring me that he has toorder Ely conveyancing searches becausethe firm are on the Nat Westconveyancing panel. Is this really necessary?

Unfortunately both you and your lawyer have little choice here. As you are taking a mortgage with a bank your property lawyer has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the CML Conveyancing Handbook. Your lawyer would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of your lender’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to follow the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook requirements . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Ely conveyancing searches.

Will my conveyancer be asking questions concerning flooding as part of the conveyancing in Ely.

The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for conveyancers dealing with homes in Ely. Some people will purchase a property in Ely, completely aware that at some time, it may be flooded. However, leaving to one side the physical destruction, where a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, adequate building insurance, or dispose of the premises. Steps can be carried out during the course of a house purchase to forewarn the buyer.

Conveyancers are not best placed to give advice on flood risk, but there are a various checks that may be undertaken by the buyer or by their conveyancers which should figure out the risks in Ely. The conventional set of completed inquiry forms supplied to a purchaser’s solicitor (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) contains a standard question of the vendor to determine whether the property has suffered from flooding. If flooding has previously occurred and is not disclosed by the seller, then a buyer could issue a claim for damages stemming from an misleading response. The purchaser’s lawyers will also conduct an environmental search. This should reveal if there is any known flood risk. If so, more detailed inquiries should be made.

Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and identified one round the corner in Ely I like with amenity areas and station in the vicinity, the downside is that it only has 52 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Ely suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?

Should you need a home loan that many years will likely be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current owner has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you can request that they start the process of the extension and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.

Is it possible to change solicitor as I have to instruct one who is on the HSBC Bank conveyancing panel. I instructed a high street conveyancing solicitor in Ely round the corner but she is not approved by HSBC Bank

We will our best to assist in finding you a conveyancing solicitor in Ely on the HSBC Bank panel. Please note that the law firms that we on the directory do not pay us a referral fee if you instruct them and are fully regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority who regulate all conveyancing solicitors in Ely. Using search facility on this website, you can compare and instruct different solicitors and conveyancers both nationally and in Ely.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to appointing a Ely conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Ely conveyancing practice) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Ely conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. The following questions could be of use:

If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

Ely Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

Does the lease have onerous restrictions? Be sure to enquire if the the lease contains any onerous restrictions in the lease. For example it is reasonably common in Ely leases that pets are not permitted in certain buildings in Ely. If you love the propertyin Ely yet your cat can’t live with you then you will be presented with a hard choice. Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments?