Are the Haxby conveyancing solicitors identified as being on the Santander conveyancing panel, together with their details provided by Santander?

Haxby conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Santander conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Santander directly.

Should my conveyancer be asking questions concerning flooding as part of the conveyancing in Haxby.

The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for lawyers dealing with homes in Haxby. There are those who acquire a house in Haxby, fully expectant that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, leaving to one side the physical damage, where a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, adequate insurance cover, or dispose of the premises. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the buyer.

Lawyers are not best placed to impart advice on flood risk, but there are a numerous searches that can be initiated by the buyer or by their conveyancers which can give them a better appreciation of the risks in Haxby. The standard information supplied to a buyer’s conveyancer (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) contains a usual question of the vendor to discover whether the property has historically flooded. In the event that flooding has previously occurred and is not notified by the seller, then a purchaser could bring a legal claim for losses resulting from an inaccurate response. A buyer’s lawyers may also carry out an environmental search. This should disclose if there is any known flood risk. If so, more detailed inquiries will need to be carried out.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up as part of conveyancing in Haxby?

Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Haxby. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

Am I better off to appoint a Haxby conveyancing lawyer who is local to the property I am buying? I have an old university friend who can perform the legal formalities but his firm is located 400kilometers drive away.

The primary upside of using a local Haxby conveyancing practice is that you can drop in to sign documents, hand in your ID and pester them if necessary. Having local Haxby know how is a bonus. That being said it's more important to get someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If if people you trust used your friend and they were content that should surpass using an unknown Haxby conveyancing lawyer solely due to them being Haxby based.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Haxby. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I am the registered owner of a 1st floor flat in Haxby, conveyancing formalities finalised August 2007. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar properties in Haxby with a long lease are worth £186,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 yearly. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2071

You have 52 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £29,500 and £34,000 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.