I am buying a house for cash in Rugby. I have lived for the last 15 years in Rugby. Conveyancing searches are exorbitant. As I have knowledge of the area and road intimately must I have all the conveyancing searches?

Provided that you do not need a mortgage, then all but one or two of the Rugby conveyancing searches are non-obligatory. Your solicitor will try and steer you, perhaps strongly, that you should have searches completed, but she is duty bound to take that path of encouragement . Do take into account; if you are going to sell the house at a future date, it will likely be be of relevance to your future buyer what the searches contain. Sometimes premises with apparent issues can still throw up negative search results. A competent conveyancing solicitor in Rugby should provide you some practical advice concerning this.

Can you clarify what the consequences are if my lawyer’s firm is expelled from the Principality Solicitor panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Rugby?

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.

Have completed on a a detached house in Rugby , how long should it take for the Land Registry to deal with the formalities evidencing my ownership? My Rugby conveyancing solicitor works at snail pace, so I want to check that my ownership is registered.

As far as conveyancing in Rugby registration is no faster or slower than anywhere else in England and Wales. Rather than based on location, timeframes can adjust depending on the party submitting the application, whether there are errors and whether the Land registry must send notices to any interested persons or bodies. Currently roughly 80% of such applications are fully dealt with in less than three weeks but some can be subject to protracted hold-ups. Historically registration is effected once the purchaser has moved in to the property therefore 'speed' is not usually primary concern yet if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your lawyers can communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for an expedited registration.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Rugby with the purpose of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Rugby can be avoided if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ representatives.
If you have had conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are settled before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge 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 ahead of 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 clearly preferable to present the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled. If you hold a share in a the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Arranging a replacement share certificate can be a time consuming process and delays many a Rugby conveyancing transaction. If a reissued share is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity. If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Rugby state that internal structural changes or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord consenting to such works. Where you fail to have the consents in place you should not contact the landlord without contacting your lawyer in advance.

Rugby Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

It is important to be aware whether changing the roof or some other significant cost is coming up to be shared by the tenants and will dramatically increase the the service costs or necessitate a specific invoice. The answer will be helpful as a) areas could cause problems in the building as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate where repairs remain unpaid b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the running of the building you will wish to know about it How is the lease structured?

When it comes to my conveyancing in Rugby should I be charged VAT on the following: (1) Land reg fee on purchase (2) Pre - completion search fee (3) SDLT E submission on purchase (4) Bank TT fee

(1) Land reg fee on purchase - No (2) Pre - completion search fees -No, (such conveyancing searches are HMLR ones and means £4 and possibly £2 bankruptcy per name on your mortgage) (3) SDLT E submission on your purchase - There is no VAT on Stamp Duty. However if the firm is charging a stamp duty e-submission fee as part of their services - some Rugby conveyancers do - that will incur VAT(4) Bank transfer fee - Yes it is for the property lawyer's time in submitting the funds this way.