When will exchange of contracts occur in sale conveyancing in Hastings and am I required to attend the lawyers office?

If you are local to our conveyancing solicitors in Hastings you are welcome to come in to sign the paperwork. That being said, the law practices we recommend supply a national conveyancing service and provide just as detailed and professional a job for you when dealing with you by post or email. The executing of the purchase agreement is not the critical part. Signing on the dotted line is just a prerequisite for the conveyancer to officially exchange when the time is right, which is ordinarily shortly after signing. The exchange process is nowadays normally dealt with by telephone and can be very rapid, although where an extended "chain" is involved, since the process requires the relevant party's solicitor (not necessarily a conveyancing solicitor in Hastings)to be in the office at the appropriate time.

I am purchasing a terraced house in Hastings. How practical is it for me to do the conveyancing?

Leaving aside the complexities and merits of DIY conveyancing in Hastings you will have to appoint a solicitor on your mortgage company's conveyancing panel to look after their interests. Most people therefore find it easier to let the solicitor act for them and the lender. Furthermore there is minimal cost savings to be made in you doing conveyancing for yourself and another lawyer conducting the conveyancing for the lender. Please feel free to use the search tool to find a lawyer on your lender panel in Hastings.

We are getting a further advance on our home loan from Co-operative as we intend to carry out improvements to our house in Hastings. Are we obliged to select a high street Hastings solicitor on the Co-operative conveyancing panel to handle the legals?

Co-operative do not ordinarily appoint firms on their conveyancing panel to deal with the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Co-operative conveyancing panel.

I'm in the process of looking at houses in Hastings and I am about to put in an offer. Is it premature to have a solicitor in place? I will be getting a mortgage with Principality.

You should start requesting conveyancing estimates from solicitors ASAP. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and forward their contact information on to the EA. As you are taking out a mortgage with Principality, make sure you remember to check that your lawyer is on the Principality conveyancing panel.

I am selling my apartment. I had a double glazing fitted in September 2010, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My purchaser’s mortgage company, Kent Reliance are being difficult. The Hastings solicitor who is on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel is saying indemnity insurance will be fine but Kent Reliance are requiring a building regulation certificate. Why do Kent Reliance have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?

It is probably the case that Kent Reliance have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Kent Reliance may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.

Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold element on a house I have offered on two weeks back in what was supposed to be a quick, no chain conveyancing. Hastings is the location of the property. Can you shed any light on this issue?

Flying freeholds in Hastings are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Hastings you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds thoroughly. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Hastings may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold property.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £350,000 flat in Hastings on Monday in a week. The freeholder has quoted £372 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Hastings?

Hastings conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes more often than not necessitates the buyer’s conveyancer sending questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to these enquiries the majority will be willing to do so. They are entitled to charge a reasonable charge for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some cases it is in excess of £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, otherwise the invoice is technically not due. In reality one has no option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

I own a basement flat in Hastings, conveyancing was carried out July 2002. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding flats in Hastings with a long lease are worth £227,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2096

With just 72 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.