I am hoping to complete my purchase in Ruislip next Thursday. I have now been asked to send a copy of my building insurance schedule by my solicitor as he says that he has to check this in his capacity as lawyer for the mortgage company. What does the insurance need to cover?

Any lawyer on acting for banks would need to check that the following risks are covered fire; lightning; aircraft; explosion; earthquake; storm; flood; escape of water or oil; riot; malicious damage; theft or attempted theft; falling trees and branches and aerials; subsidence; heave;landslip;collision;accidental damage to underground services;professional fees, demolition and site clearance costs; and public liability to anyone else. There are some other issues such as the level of excess that are set out in a lender’s UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions. These obligations are not unique to conveyancing in Ruislip.

We previously selected solicitors with offices in Ruislip on the RBS solicitor panel. They are now charging me a separate sum for dealing with the RBS mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by RBS?

Unfortunately, as long as it is in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your solicitor can charge a fee for this. This fee is not set by RBS but by your Ruislip property lawyer. Some firms on the RBS panel will levy ’dealing with mortgage’ fee and others do not.

My wife and I are in the process of looking at apartments in Ruislip and I am now considering a potential offer. Is it best to have a lawyer on ‘stand by’? I will be getting a mortgage with Skipton.

You should start requesting conveyancing quotes from solicitors ASAP. After you have chosen your lawyer and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their contact information on to the selling agent. Given that you are obtaining a mortgage with Skipton, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the Skipton conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.

My offer on a semi in Ruislip has been accepted, the sellers do however have a dependent purchase. The sellers have placed an offer on a flat, however it’s not yet agreed to, and have viewings of other flats booked. I have selected a local conveyancing solicitor in Ruislip. What do I do now? At what stage should I apply for the mortgage with Co-operative?

It is normal to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur costs prematurely (mortgage application is in the region of one thousand pounds, then valuation, Ruislip conveyancing search costs, etc). The first course of action is to ensure that your property lawyer is on the Co-operative conveyancing panel. Concerning the next phase this very much depends on the specifics of your transaction, attraction to the property and on the state of the market. During a buoyant market some home buyers will apply for a home loan with Co-operative and arrange for the valuation and only if it was satisfactory would they pay their lawyer to press on with the conveyancing in Ruislip.

I'm purchasing my first flat in Ruislip with a loan from Virgin Money. The sellers would not budge the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of additionals instead. The sale representative told me not inform my lawyer about this extras as it may affect my loan with the bank. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

I am a sole trader intending to take an assignment of a lease of an office on the high street. Can you recommend solicitors offering no-sale-no fees for commercial conveyancing in Ruislip for less than £1,200?

We are happy to recommend firms who have well rounded knowledge of commercial conveyancing in Ruislip, including the sale and acquisition of businesses as well as simply property. If you are hoping to purchase or dispose of a shop, pub, restaurant, office, retail premises or a whole business we will find you the right solicitor. As for the costs this will depend on the structure and nuances of the proposed transaction. Let us have your contact information or call us so that we may provide you with a fixed commercial conveyancing calculation.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to be perfect, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a leasehold house in Ruislip. Conveyancing advisers have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Ruislip are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Ruislip so you should seriously consider looking for a Ruislip conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your solicitor will report to you on the legal implications.

I am the registered owner of a basement flat in Ruislip. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the amount due for a lease extension?

in cases where there is a absentee landlord or if there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to arrive at the amount due.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Ruislip premises is Flat 72 Queens Walk in January 2013. The Tribunals calculated the premium payable to be £22,090. This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 53.26 years.