I am acquiring a property without a mortgage in Langham. I have resided for the previous twelve years in Langham. Conveyancing searches are exorbitant. Given that I have knowledge of the area and road intimately should I not bother getting the solicitor to do all the conveyancing searches?

Provided that you do not need a mortgage, then almost all of the Langham conveyancing searches are at your discretion. Your lawyer will try and sway you, perhaps strongly, that you should have searches carried out, but he has a professional duty to take that path of advice. One thing to consider; if you are likely to sell the house one day, it may be of interest to your prospective purchaser what the searches disclose. On occasion premises with apparent issues can still throw up detrimental search results. A competent conveyancing solicitor in Langham should be able to give you some constructive advice concerning this.

It is 10 years ago since I bought my home in Langham. Conveyancing solicitors have now been retained on the sale but I can't find my title deeds. Is this a problem?

You need not be too concerned. Firstly there is a possibility that the deeds will be kept by your mortgage company or they could be in the possession of the solicitor who acted in your purchase. Secondly in all probability the property will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you own the property by your conveyancing lawyers acquiring current official copies of the land registers. The vast majority of conveyancing in Langham involves registered property but in the rare situation where your home is not registered it is more tricky but is resolvable.

I am helping my niece sell her flat in Langham. Will the solicitor order an energy assessment or it is for the seller to see to?

After the demise of HIPs, energy assessments became a compulsory part of moving property. An energy performance certificate must be to hand prior to the property being put on the market. This is not something that lawyers normally arrange. If you are using a Langham conveyancing practitioner they might be willing to arrange energy performance certificates due to their contacts with long established local assessors

A friend advised me that in buying a property in Langham there may be various restrictions affecting the ability to carry out external changes to the property. Is this right?

We are aware of a number of properties in Langham which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to carry out external variations. Part of the conveyancing in Langham should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.

Last month we had a mortgage agreed in principle with RBS. Langham conveyancing practitioners have been instructed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from RBS?

There is no definitive answer here. Have RBS done the valuation? Have you informed RBS as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the RBS conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.

Will my conveyancer be asking questions concerning flooding as part of the conveyancing in Langham.

Flooding is a growing risk for lawyers dealing with homes in Langham. There are those who purchase a house in Langham, fully expectant that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, leaving to one side the physical destruction, if a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, satisfactory insurance cover, or sell the premises. Steps can be carried out as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the buyer.

Solicitors are not best placed to impart advice on flood risk, however there are a various checks that may be initiated by the purchaser or on a buyer’s behalf which should figure out the risks in Langham. The conventional set of completed inquiry forms given to a purchaser’s lawyer (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) incorporates a usual question of the seller to determine if the property has suffered from flooding. In the event that the residence has been flooded in past which is not notified by the seller, then a buyer could bring a claim for damages as a result of such an incorrect answer. The buyer’s lawyers should also order an enviro search. This will higlight whether there is any known flood risk. If so, further inquiries will need to be made.

I need to retain a conveyancing solicitor for residential conveyancing in Langham. I happened to discover a site which looks to be the ideal answer If it is possible to get all this stuff completed via web that would be ideal. Should I be concerned? What should out be looking out for?

As usual with these online conveyancers you need to read ALL the small print - did you notice the extra charge for dealing with the mortgage?