My lawyer has identified a a problem with the lease for the apartment we are purchasing in Poundbury. The other side have suggested defective title insurance as a solution. We are happy with insurance and will cover the costs. Our solicitor says that he must check that the lender is willing to move forward with this solution. Are we the client or is the lender?

Even though you have a mortgage offer from the mortgage company does not mean to say that the property will meet their provisions for the purposes of a mortgage. Your lawyer has to ensure that the lease has to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook provisions. You and the bank are the client. These conveyancing instructions must be adhered to.

Please explain the implications if my lawyer’s firm is suspended from the Nottingham Solicitor panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Poundbury?

First, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit at a cost.

I have been told that property searches are the number one cause of stalling in Poundbury conveyancing transactions. Is that correct?

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) published findings of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not figure within the most frequent causes of hindrances in the conveyancing process. Local searches are not likely to feature in any delay in conveyancing in Poundbury.

How does conveyancing in Poundbury differ for new build properties?

Most buyers of new build premises in Poundbury approach us having been asked by the seller to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the property is built. This is because house builders in Poundbury usually acquire the site, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are accustomed to new build conveyancing in Poundbury or who has acted in the same development.

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Poundbury. Before I get started I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Poundbury - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title. For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

Poundbury Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries Prior to buying

The best form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this scenario the lessees enjoy being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is frequently employed if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent retained by the leaseholders. The majority of Poundbury leasehold properties will be liable to pay a service charge for the upkeep of the building invoiced by the management company. Should you buy the flat you will have to meet this amount, normally periodically during the year. This can vary from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large communal grounds. In all probability there will be a rentcharge to be met yearly, this is usually not a significant figure, say around £50-£100 but you should to enquire it because on occasion it could be many hundreds of pounds. In the main the outlay for major works are not incorporated into the maintenance charges, although some managing agents in Poundbury ask leasehold owners to pay into a sinking fund created for the specific purpose of establishing a fund for major repairs or maintenance.