I am expecting a mortgage with Nat West. I would like to employ the services of a Licensed Conveyancer in Old Stratford. Does the Nat West Solicitor panel exclude conveyancers regulated by the CLC?

The Nat West conveyancing panel is, like many other lenders, associated to the CML or BSA, open to Licensed Conveyancers regulated by the CLC.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified during conveyancing in Old Stratford?

Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Old Stratford. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

I am looking for a flat up to £245,000 and identified one near me in Old Stratford I like with open areas and transport links in the vicinity, however it only has 52 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Old Stratford suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a short lease?

Should you require a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer concerning this matter.

I have been advised by numerous property agents in Old Stratford to get a quote from a solicitor on your site. Is there a financial incentive for Estate Agents to promote your services rather than alternative conveyancing organisations?

We refuse to offer any referral fee for sending work our way. We found it would be just too difficult a fee as members of the public would think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I getting any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Old Stratford from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Old Stratford can be bypassed if you get in touch lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where a dispute is unresolved. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over rather than unsettled. Some Old Stratford leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their lawyers. If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Organising a replacement share certificate can be a lengthy formality and frustrates many a Old Stratford conveyancing transaction. If a reissued share is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Old Stratford - A selection of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

The best form of lease arrangement is where the freehold title is owned by the leaseholders. In this scenario the tenants have being in charge if their destiny and notwithstanding that a managing agent is frequently retained where it is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders. Are there any major works in the planning that could increase the maintenance costs?