Is the fact that my conveyancer in Shropshire is not on my mortgage company's solicitor panel that there is a problem with the quality of her work?

It would not be wise to jump to that conclusion. There are plenty of plausible explanations. Just recently a report by the solicitors regulator revealed that over three quarters of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The top 5 reasons are as follows: (1) low volume of transactions (2) the solicitor is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. Should you be concerned you should contact the Shropshire conveyancing firm and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for your lender.

About to purchase a new build apartment in Shropshire. Conveyancing is necessary evil at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build legal work.

Here are examples of a few leasehold new build enquiries that you should expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Shropshire

Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier? The Vendor must covenant to keep unoccupied units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. Will the freehold then be transferred for a nominal consideration (not exceeding £100) to the Management Company? Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? Please supply a car parking plan.

I decided to have a survey carried out on a house in Shropshire before instructing solicitors. I have been told that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. My surveyor advised that some banks tend not give a loan on this type of property.

It varies from the lender to lender. Lloyds has different requirements for example to Birmingham Midshires. Should you wish to call us we can investigate further with the appropriate lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Shropshire. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Shropshire to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.

As co-executor for the estate of my grandmother I am selling a property in Newport but live in Shropshire. My solicitor (approximately 235 kilometers awayneeds me to sign a statutory declaration prior to the transaction finalising. Could you suggest a conveyancing practitioner in Shropshire who can attest this legal document for me?

Technically speaking you are not likely to need to have the documents witnessed by a conveyancing solicitor. Normally any notary public or qualified solicitor will be fine regardless of whether they are Shropshire based

I work for a reputable estate agency in Shropshire where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Shropshire conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the seller of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

Shropshire Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

This question is important as a) areas may cause problems in the block as the communal areas may start to deteriorate if repairs remain unpaid b) if the leasehold owners have an issue with the managing agents you will wish to have all the details You will want to discover as much as possible about the company managing the building as they can either make life much easier or much more difficult. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you are frequently at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to daily issues such as the upkeep of the communal areas. You should not be shy to ask other people what they think of their management. On a final note, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the service charge to the managing agents and specifically how they are spending that money. What is the service charge and ground rent on the property?