I am acquiring a house without a mortgage in Henlow. I have lived for the previous 20 years in Henlow. Conveyancing searches are expensive. Given that I know the area and road intimately should I not bother getting the solicitor to do all the conveyancing searches?

If you not getting a home loan, then the vast majority of the Henlow conveyancing searches are non-obligatory. Your lawyer will try and steer you, no-doubt strongly, that you should have searches done, but he has a professional duty to do this. Do consider; if you are going to sell the house one day, it will likely be be of importance to your prospective buyer what the searches determine. Sometimes premises with apparent issues can still show up unfavourable search results. A competent conveyancing solicitor in Henlow will provide you some sensible guidance concerning this.

My grandmother passed away last year and as sole heir and executor I was left the house in Henlow. The house had a small mortgage left on it of around £5k. I want to transfer the title deeds into my name whilst I re-mortgage to Barclays, pay off the mortgage. Is this allowed?

Given you plan to refinance then Barclays will insist on your using a conveyancer on the Barclays conveyancing panel. Here is link to the Land Registry online guidance around what to do when a property owner dies. This will help you to understand the registration process behind changing the details re the registered title. in your case it would appear that you are effectively purchasing the property from the estate. Your Barclays conveyancing panel solicitor pays the new mortgage money into the estate, the estate pays off the old mortgage, the charge is released and you become the owner and the Barclays mortgage is registered as a charge at the Land Registry.

My relative suggested that if I am purchasing in Henlow I should ask my conveyancer to carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?

A search of this type is sometimes included in the estimate for your Henlow conveyancing searches. It is not a small document of about 40 pages, listing and detailing significant information about Henlow around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Henlow Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime statistics, Local Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information regarding Henlow.

How does conveyancing in Henlow differ for new build properties?

Most buyers of new build property in Henlow contact us having been asked by the developer to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is constructed. This is because developers in Henlow usually purchase the real estate, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct property lawyers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are accustomed to new build conveyancing in Henlow or who has acted in the same development.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Henlow what are the most frequent lease problems?

Leasehold conveyancing in Henlow is not unique. Most leases are drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain provisions are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

A duty to insure the building Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You could have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Nationwide Building Society, Chelsea Building Society, and Alliance & Leicester all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

I acquired a split level flat in Henlow, conveyancing having been completed April 1998. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent properties in Henlow with an extended lease are worth £207,000. The ground rent is £60 per annum. The lease finishes on 21st October 2080

You have 57 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £28,500 and £33,000 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.