I have been advised by my solicitor that lack of right of way insurance is required on my purchase. What is the level of cover for Newcastle upon Tyne conveyancing?

The appropriate level of lack of right of way indemnity insurance should be dictated by who your lender. It would differ for example between Santander and The Royal Bank of Scotland. Conveyancing solicitors as opposed to members of the public take out such policies.

We previously appointed solicitors located in Newcastle upon Tyne on the Co-operative solicitor panel. They have just billed me a separate sum for the legal aspects of the Co-operative mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by Co-operative?

Provided it is contained in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your conveyancing practitioner may levy a fee for this. The charge is not dictated by Co-operative but by your Newcastle upon Tyne conveyancer. Some firms on the Co-operative panel will quote an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.

Having digested plenty of mortgage guides, I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Newcastle upon Tyne solicitor - who is on the Principality conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?

Principality will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Principality will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. Your property lawyer will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by your Newcastle upon Tyne postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Principality, you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Newcastle upon Tyne.

Just had an offer accepted on a new build flat in Newcastle upon Tyne. 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 legal work.

Here is a sample of a few leasehold new build questions that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Newcastle upon Tyne

Please supply evidence that the form of Lease proposed has been approved by the Land Registry. The Lease must contain a provision on behalf of the Vendor to pay the service charges in respect of unoccupied units in order to ensure that all services can be provided. The Vendor must covenant to keep unoccupied units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. 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. Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose?

I need to retain a conveyancing solicitor for purchase conveyancing in Newcastle upon Tyne. I've chance upon a web site which appears to be the perfect answer If it is possible to get all the legals done via web that would be preferable. Do I need to be wary? What are the potential pitfalls?

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?

I work for a busy estate agency in Newcastle upon Tyne where we have experienced a few leasehold sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Newcastle upon Tyne conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Newcastle upon Tyne - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments? Does the lease contain onerous restrictions? Plenty Newcastle upon Tyne leasehold properties will be liable to pay a service bill for maintenance of the building set by the management company. Should you buy the apartment you will have to meet this amount, usually quarterly throughout the year. This may be anything from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large communal areas. In all probability there will be a ground rent to be met annual, ordinarily this is not a exorbitant amount, say approximately £50-£100 but you should to check as occasionally it can be many hundreds of pounds.

Been searching for a conveyancer for freehold sale conveyancing in Newcastle upon Tyne. We are selling, simple no mortgage to pay off, no rush, no onward chain. Got an estimate from a conveyancer for £1000 plus VAT which is a little high given that its so straightforward. Is it possible to find less expensive fees for conveyancing in Newcastle upon Tyne?

Given that it’s a sale only, 475 + VAT should be about the best for a Newcastle upon Tyne solicitor firm.