A colleague advised me that if I am buying in Northallerton I should ask my conveyancer to carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?

This is a search is occasionally included in the estimate for your Northallerton conveyancing searches. It is a large report of more than thirty pages, listing and setting out important information about Northallerton around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime statistics, Local Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information about Northallerton.

I am looking for a flat up to £305k and found one round the corner in Northallerton I like with open areas and station in the vicinity, the downside is that it only has 61 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Northallerton suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a lease with such few years left?

Should you need a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term may be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you could ask them to start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this.

Should I be wary about brokers that I am dealing with are suggesting a national conveyancing firm as opposed to a High Street Northallerton conveyancing company?

As with many professional services, often input from relatives can be most helpful. Yet there are many parties with a keen interest in a conveyancing matter; estate agents, mortgage brokers and lenders might all put forward lawyers to choose. Sometimes the lawyers might be known to one of the organisations as experts in their field, but occasionally there exists a financial incentive behind the recommendation. You are free to appoint your preferred conveyancer. However, bear in mind that the majority of mortgage providers specify a panel list of law firms you have to use for the lender related work in your home move.

I am looking at a couple of flats in Northallerton which have about fifty years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in Northallerton is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the salability of the premises. The majority of purchasers and banks, leases with less than 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Northallerton conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease. You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I acquired a garden flat in Northallerton, conveyancing having been completed 3 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Northallerton with an extended lease are worth £221,000. The ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease runs out on 21st October 2095

With 70 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

Do online conveyancing organisations cover everything a high street Northallerton solicitor does or must I employ a solicitor for the final stages for my conveyancing in Northallerton?

Where you choose an online conveyancer they will undertake all the things your Northallerton conveyancer will cover.