My bid for a property was accepted at auction in Poundbury. Conveyancing is necessary. What happens now?

Given that you have now exchanged you now have to appoint a conveyancing lawyer quickly as you are faced with a tight a fixed date to complete the transaction. Every auction property will have a corresponding auction pack. This will include evidence of title and search results. Where you are dealing with leasehold property the auction papers should include a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and other conveyancing paperwork pertinent to leasehold premises. You should hand this to your appointed conveyancing solicitor ASAP. Do make sure that you have funds in order to complete on the date specified in the contract.

We previously selected solicitors locally in Poundbury on the UBS solicitor panel. They are now charging me a further sum for the legal aspects of the UBS mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by UBS?

As unfair as it may seem, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your conveyancer may charge a fee for this. The fee is not set by UBS but by your Poundbury lawyer. Numerous firms on the UBS panel will levy ’dealing with mortgage’ fee but some firms include it on their overall fee.

Last month we had a mortgage agreed in principle with UBS. Poundbury conveyancing lawyers have been appointed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from UBS?

There is no definitive answer here. Have UBS completed the valuation? Have you advised UBS as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the UBS conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.

I understand that there are debates on Chancel Insurance on online forums. Do I need this when acquiring a residence in Poundbury? or Apparently there is historic law that could mean that owners of property living in a parish church boundary may be liable to pay for maintenance towards the chancel within the church. Is this suitable for conveyancing in Poundbury?

Unless a prior purchase of the house completed post 12 October 2013 you may take it that conveyancing practitioners handling conveyancing in Poundbury to continue to recommend a chancel search and or chancel repair liability insurance.

Just had an offer accepted on a new build flat in Poundbury. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build legal work.

Set out below is a sample of a few leasehold new build enquiries that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Poundbury

There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants. 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. The Landlord must covenant to assume the management if the Management Company goes into liquidation or otherwise defaults in running the management scheme. Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose?

Due to the guidance of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Poundbury before instructing conveyancers. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. The surveyor has said that some mortgage companies tend not issue a mortgage on a flying freehold home.

It varies from the lender to lender. HSBC has different requirements from Birmingham Midshires. Should you wish to telephone us we can investigate further with the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Poundbury. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Poundbury to see if the conveyancing costs will increase in light of this.

My husband and I may need to sub-let our Poundbury ground floor flat for a while due to a career opportunity. We used a Poundbury conveyancing firm in 2003 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Poundbury do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably refuse but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

I acquired a split level flat in Poundbury, conveyancing having been completed in 2003. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Comparable properties in Poundbury with over 90 years remaining are worth £179,000. The ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2080

You have 57 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £26,600 and £30,800 as well as costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.