It is a dozen years since I purchased my property in Penistone. Conveyancing lawyers have just been appointed on the sale but I am unable to find my deeds. Will this cause complications?

You need not be too concerned. First there is a chance that the deeds will be kept by your mortgage company or they may be archived with the lawyers who handled your purchase. Secondly in most cases the property will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to prove you own the property by your conveyancing lawyers procuring up to date copy of the land registers. The vast majority of conveyancing in Penistone involves registered property but in the rare situation where your property is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is not insurmountable.

Various web forums that I have come across warn that are the main reason for hinderance in Penistone house deals. Is that correct?

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) released determinations of research by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not figure amongst the common causes of delays during the legal transfer of property. Local searches are not likely to feature in any slowing down conveyancing in Penistone.

I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £195,000 and found one round the corner in Penistone I like with open areas and transport links nearby, the downside is that it only has 61 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Penistone suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a lease with such few years left?

If you need a mortgage that many years will likely be an issue. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for at least 2 years you could ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer concerning this.

Are there any apps to help identify a Penistone solicitor on the Bank of Scotland conveyancing panel? I have a car and am prepared to travel upto 20miles to meet the solicitor.

Feel free to make use of the facility on this page. Please select a mortgage company and your location and you will see a number of Penistone conveyancing lawyers located nearest you. We have detailed some Penistone conveyancing firms at the bottom of this page and you can telephone them to verify if they are on the Bank of Scotland member panel

Back In 2003, I bought a leasehold flat in Penistone. Conveyancing and Leeds Building Society mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Penistone who acted for me is not around. Any advice?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to incur the fees of a Penistone conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I invested in buying a split level flat in Penistone, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding properties in Penistone with over 90 years remaining are worth £171,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease ends on 21st October 2104

You have 79 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £7,600 and £8,800 as well as costs.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.