The Shotton conveyancing lawyers that I recently instructed on my purchase in Shotton have suddenly closed. They were on acting for me because I had to have a firm on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel and my preferred Shotton lawyer was not. I wrote them a cheque for two hundred pounds in advance. What should be my next steps?

If you have an estate agent involved then let them know immediately so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new solicitors should be in a position to assist.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified during conveyancing in Shotton?

Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Shotton. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a property I put an offer in a fortnight ago in what was supposed to be a simple, no chain conveyancing. Shotton is the location of the property. Is there any guidance you can impart?

Flying freeholds in Shotton are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Shotton you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds very carefully. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Shotton may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.

Am I best advised to choose a Shotton conveyancing solicitor who is local to the property I am purchasing? We have a good friend who can perform the conveyancing however her office is 300miles away.

The primary upside of using a high street Shotton conveyancing firm is that you can attend the office to sign documents, deliver your identification documents and apply pressure on them where appropriate. Having local Shotton know how is a plus. However nothing is more important than finding someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If if people you trust instructed your friend and they were content that should trump using an unfamiliar Shotton conveyancing lawyer solely due to them being Shotton based.

I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Shotton both have approximately 50 years left on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Shotton is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the value of the premises. For most buyers and banks, leases with less than eighty years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Shotton conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease. They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I am the registered owner of a basement flat in Shotton, conveyancing having been completed in 2010. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar flats in Shotton with over 90 years remaining are worth £222,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease finishes on 21st October 2089

With only 70 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.