I am assisting my niece sell her property in Huyton. Does the solicitor commission an energy assessment or do I organise this?

Following the demise of HIPs, energy assessments was retained a required element of selling a house. An energy assessment needs to be to hand prior to the property being put on the market. This is not a task that law firms ordinarily organise. If you are instructing a Huyton conveyancing practitioner they may be willing to arrange EPC’s due to their contacts with long established local assessors

I am the sole recipient of my late grandmother’s estate and I have everything in my name now, including the my former home in Huyton. The Huyton property was put into my name in December. I plan to dispose of the property. I understand that there is a Mortgage Lenders six month 'rule', meaning my property ownership could be treated the same way as though I had purchased the house in December. Do I have to wait 6 months to sell?

The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook requires solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you might be caught by that. Most lenders would take a sensible view as this obligation is principally there to pick up on the purchase and immediately sell or the flipping of properties.

My offer on a house in Huyton has been agreed to, but there is a chain. The sellers have placed an offer on a property, however it’s not been accepted yet, and have viewings of other flats in the pipeline. I have selected a high street conveyancing solicitor in Huyton. What do I do now? At what point should I apply for the mortgage with Clydesdale?

It is normal to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur expenses too early (mortgage application is in the region of £1k, then valuation, Huyton conveyancing search fees, etc). First, you should check that your conveyancer is on the Clydesdale approved list. Regarding the next phase this very much dictated by the specifics of your transaction, attraction to this property and on the state of the market. During a rising market some purchasers would apply for the mortgage with Clydesdale and arrange for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they pay their solicitor to move forward with the conveyancing in Huyton.

I decided to have a survey carried out on a house in Huyton before instructing conveyancers. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold aspect to the house. My surveyor has said that some lenders will not grant a mortgage on this type of home.

It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different requirements for example to Nationwide. Should you wish to telephone us we can check via the relevant mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Huyton. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

Given that I will soon part with £400,000 on 3 bedroom house in Huyton I would like to talk to a conveyancer about myhome move before instructing the firm. Is this something that you can arrange?

Absolutely - we would be happy to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you liaising with the conveyancer who will be carrying out your property ownership legalities in Huyton.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - every client is unique person, not a matter reference. The solicitors that we put you in touch with believe that the fees you are provided with for your conveyancing in Huyton should be the figure that you are charged.

Is it best to use a Huyton conveyancing solicitor who is local to the property I am purchasing? I have an old university friend who can deal with the conveyancing however her office is over three hundred miles drive away.

The primary upside of using a local Huyton conveyancing firm is that you can drop in to execute paperwork, deliver your identification documents and apply pressure on them if necessary. They will also have local insight which is a plus. That being said it's more important to get someone that will do a good and efficient job. If other friends have used your friend and in the main were impressed that must surpass using an unknown Huyton conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being based in the area.

Should one remove a deceased person's name from the title register for a house in Huyton?

Where a Huyton property is jointly owned and one of the proprietors passes away, their name will not automatically be removed from the title deeds. It is not necessary to remove their name as when it comes to a disposal your conveyancer would just be asked to evidence why the co proprietor is missing from the contract, typically this takes the form of the probate documents.

With the aim of making the sale conveyancing more straight forward in the future you may apply to have the deceased person erased from the title by applying to HM Land Registry with proof of the death. There is no land registry fee payable.