I am in a contract race with another prospective purchaser for a property in Herefordshire. What can be done to hasten the buying process?

In a situation where the seller is applying time constraints for your conveyancing we would recommend that your lawyer is familiar with the location as they will have local contacts and know-how. It is possible that they would have transacted otherhomes in the same road. You would be best advised to use a Herefordshire conveyancing lawyer. Second, be sure that the lawyer is on the lender panel. It is understood that nearly one in five of Herefordshire conveyancing deals are delayed or jeopardised after discovering a purchaser’s conveyancer was not on their banks panel. In many cases this discovery resulted in the home move being frustrated by almost three weeks. It is estimated that this issue impacts in the region of 100,000 home sales every year. Most Herefordshire conveyancing practices can not represent certain lenders so do check as early as possible.

I opted to have a survey carried out on a property in Herefordshire before retaining conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold aspect to the property. My surveyor has said that some lenders will not give a mortgage on such a premises.

It varies from the lender to lender. Bank of Scotland has different instructions for example to Halifax. If you contact us we can look into this further via the relevant bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Herefordshire. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Herefordshire to see if the conveyancing costs will increase in light of this.

Do I need to be suspicious about brokers that I am dealing with are recommending a nationwide conveyancing firm rather than a High Street Herefordshire conveyancing firm?

As is the case with many service providers, often referrals from connections can be extremely useful or valuable. Yet there are many parties with a keen interest in a conveyancing deal; estate agents, mortgage brokers and mortgage companies might all recommend conveyancers to choose. Sometimes these solicitors might be known to one of the organisations as being good in their field, but sometimes there behind the scenes commercial relationship behind the recommendation. You are free to select your preferred lawyer. Don't forget that most lenders operate an approved list of law firms you have to use for the lender related work in your home move.

My husband and I are novice buyers - agreed a price, yet the agent told us that the seller will only go ahead if we use their recommended conveyancers as they need a ‘quick sale’. My instinct tells me that we should use a high street conveyancer used to conveyancing in Herefordshire

It is improbable the owners are driving this. Should the seller desire ‘a quick sale', taking such a hostile approach to a serious purchaser is is going to put the whole deal at risk. Bypass the agents and go straight to the owners and make sure they comprehend that (a)you are keen to buy (b)you are excited to move forward, with finances in place © you have nothing to sell (d) you wish to move quickly (e)however you intend to instruct your preferred Herefordshire conveyancing solicitors - not the ones that will earn their estate agent a introducer fee or hit his conveyancing thresholds set by head office.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Herefordshire where we have experienced a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Herefordshire conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

Herefordshire Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

You will want to find out as much as you can about the managing agents as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you are often in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to daily matters such as the cleanliness of the communal areas. You should not be shy to ask prospective neighbours whether they are happy with them. In conclusion, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the managing agents and precisely how they are spending that money. The answer will be useful as a) areas may cause problems for the building as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate if maintenance remain unpaid b) if the tenants have an issue with the managing agents you will want to have full disclosure Where a Herefordshire lease has less than eighty years it will affect the salability of the flat. Check with your bank that they are content with remaining years on the lease. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will probably need a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of what this will be. Remember, in most cases you would need to own the residence for a couple of years before you are entitled to carry out a lease extension.