We are buying a 3 bedroom apartment in Priorslee with a mortgage. We would like to retain our Priorslee solicitor, however the mortgage company advise he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the bank panel conveyancing practices or retain our Priorslee solicitor as well as pay for one of their panel firms to represent them. This seems very unfair; are we not able to insist that the lender use our Priorslee conveyancing practitioner ?

No, not really. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your Priorslee conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

At what point can the exchange of contracts happen for domestic conveyancing in Priorslee and do I need to be at the lawyers branch?

Where you are local to one of the conveyancing solicitors in Priorslee you are invited in to sign documents. However, the law practices we work with offer countrywide coverage for conveyancing and provide as equally diligent and professional a job for you when communicating with you digitally. The signing of the sale agreement is not the point of no return. A signed contract simply enables the firm to exchange contracts when the time is right, which is ordinarily shortly after signing. The procedure is is usually a five minute process, although where a lengthy "chain" is involved, since the process requires the relevant party's solicitor (not necessarily a conveyancing solicitor in Priorslee)to be in the office available at the end of the phone to exchange contracts.

Due to the encouragement of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Priorslee before appointing conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. The surveyor has said that some lenders tend refuse to give a loan on such a house.

It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different requirements for example to Halifax. Should you wish to call us we can investigate further with the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Priorslee. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

As co-executor for the estate of my uncle I am disposing of a residence in Newport but reside in Priorslee. My solicitor (based 200 kilometers awayneeds me to sign a statutory declaration ahead of the transaction finalising. Could you suggest a conveyancing lawyer in Priorslee who can attest and place their company stamp on the document?

strictly speaking you should not need to have the documents witnessed by a conveyancing solicitor. Normally any notary public or solicitor will be fine regardless of whether they are located in Priorslee

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Priorslee where we have witnessed a few flat sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Priorslee conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Priorslee - Sample of Queries Prior to buying

Plenty Priorslee leasehold flats will incur a service bill for the upkeep of the block levied by the freeholder. Should you buy the flat you will have to pay this charge, normally in instalments during the year. This can be anything from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built buildings. There will also be a rentcharge to be met annual, this is usually not a exorbitant sum, say about £25-£75 but you should to enquire as on occasion it could be surprisingly expensive. The prefered form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this situation the tenants have being in charge if their destiny and although a managing agent is frequently employed where it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders. This question is important as a) areas could result in problems in the building as the common areas may begin to deteriorate where maintenance are not paid for b) if the tenants have a dispute with the managing agents you will wish to have all the details