My wife and I are purchasing a apartment in Hilton. I might seem paranoid but how we can trust a lawyer? At some point we have to send money into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our money?

Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.

My solicitor has informed me that breach of easement insurance is needed on my purchase. What is the typical level of cover needed for conveyancing in Hilton?

The right level of breach of easement indemnity insurance should be dictated by who who your lender is. It would differ for example between Accord Mortgages Ltd and Barnsley Building Society. Conveyancing practitioners as opposed to borrowers take out such insurances.

My offer on a semi in Hilton has been agreed to, the vendors do however have a connected purchase. The owners have offered on a flat, but it’s not been accepted yet, and have viewings of other properties booked. I have instructed a local conveyancing solicitor in Hilton. What do I do now? At what point do I apply for the mortgage with Virgin Money?

It is normal to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket too early (mortgage application is approx £1k, then valuation, Hilton conveyancing search charges, etc). The first thing to do is check that your property lawyer is on the Virgin Money approved list. Concerning the subsequent stages this very much dictated by the circumstances of your case, motivation for this property and on the state of the market. In a rising market many purchasers will apply for a home loan with Virgin Money and arrange for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they request their property lawyer to press on with searches.

What can a local search inform me concerning the property I am buying in Hilton?

Hilton conveyancing often commences with the submitting local authority searches directly from your local Authority or through a personal search company for instance PSG The local search plays a central part in many a Hilton conveyancing purchase; as long as you don’t want any unpleasant surprises after you move into your property. The search will reveal information on, amongst other things, details on planning applications applicable to the property (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 topic areas.

About to purchase a new build flat in Hilton. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build conveyancing.

Set out below are examples of a selection of leasehold new build questions that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Hilton

Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision. Where service of notices and proceedings can be at the property demised please confirm that this can be amended to include simultaneous services at the Lessees’ solicitors’ offices where the Lessee from time to time is not resident in the UK - such solicitors may be varied by notice in writing to the Landlord from time to time but otherwise will be as previously specified. If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. Where there is an Undertaking being granted there is the risk of forfeiture of the Headlease subject to relief if one or more of the Underlessees are willing to accept the original Head Lessee’s obligations as otherwise relief will be denied to the Underlessees. The only alternatives are the Head Lessor agreeing not to forfeit the Headlease or the Head Lessee guaranteeing to the Underlessees that it will not be in breach of the Headlease.

Last March I purchased a leasehold house in Hilton. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee 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. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure 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 bought a basement flat in Hilton, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Similar properties in Hilton with a long lease are worth £190,000. The ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease terminates on 21st October 2086

With only 62 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £17,100 and £19,800 plus costs.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.

My estate agent has recommended their solicitor for my conveyancing in Hilton - Is it not simpler easier to just instruct them?

It is not always the case and you are free to use whichever conveyancing practitioner of your choosing for your Hilton home move. A solicitor put forward by a 3rd party adviser may not necessarily be the best conveyancer, they may put forward their own conveyancing firm who are based far away. In this instance you may not have contact with your property lawyer and due to the lack of continuity in the transaction, it may be difficult to obtain updates.