We are purchasing a house and need a conveyancing solicitor in Neath Abbey who is on the Nationwide solicitor panel. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a firm?

Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Nationwide . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in Neath Abbey.

A colleague suggested that if I am buying in Neath Abbey I should ask my conveyancer to execute a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?

A search of this type is sometimes quoted for as part of the standard Neath Abbey conveyancing searches. It is a large document of about 40 pages, listing and detailing significant information about Neath Abbey around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Neath Abbey Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime details, Neath Abbey Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information regarding Neath Abbey.

I opted to have a survey done on a house in Neath Abbey before appointing conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold aspect to the house. Our surveyor advised that some mortgage companies will refuse to grant a loan on a flying freehold house.

It varies from the lender to lender. Bank of Scotland has different requirements from Nationwide. If you call us we can look into this further with the appropriate lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Neath Abbey. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Neath Abbey especially if they are familiar with such properties in Neath Abbey.

My step-father has recommend that I use his conveyancers in Neath Abbey. Should I use them?

Much as we are happy to recommend a Neath Abbey conveyancing lawyer the ideal way to find a conveyancing solicitor is to get referrals from friends or relatives who have actually experience in using the solicitor you're contemplating using.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Neath Abbey. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before 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. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure 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 inherited a studio flat in Neath Abbey, conveyancing formalities finalised 5 years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Neath Abbey with an extended lease are worth £197,000. The ground rent is £55 levied per year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2080

With 55 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £31,400 and £36,200 as well as legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.