Why do I have to pay up front for my conveyancing in St Fagans?

If you are buying a property in St Fagans your lawyer will ask you to provide them with monies to cover the search fees. Generally this is requested to cover the fees of the Local Authority Search. If any down payment is as part of the purchase price then this will be needed shortly prior to exchange of contracts. Any further balance that is needed will be payable a couple of days ahead of the completion date.

I had a mortgage agreed in principle with Leeds Building Society. St Fagans conveyancing solicitors were chosen. How long does it take for Leeds Building Society to send the offer to the lawyer?

There is no definitive answer here. Have Leeds Building Society done the valuation? Have you informed Leeds Building Society as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel? Sometimes it can take as long as six weeks for a mortgage offer to be issued.

We expect to receive a OIP from Coventry BS this week so we can work out what to offer on a property we like as otherwise we only have online calculators to go by (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do Coventry BS recommend any St Fagans solicitors on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel, or is it better to go independently?

You will need to appoint St Fagans solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and Coventry BS through the process.

I am selling my flat. I had a double glazing fitted in June 2006, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's lender, Yorkshire BS are being pedantic. The St Fagans solicitor who is on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel is saying indemnity insurance will be fine but Yorkshire BS are requiring a building regulation certificate. Why do Yorkshire BS have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?

It is probably the case that Yorkshire BS have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Yorkshire BS may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.

I am purchasing a new build house in St Fagans benefiting from help to buy. The sellers would not move on the price so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The property agent told me not reveal to my conveyancer about the deal as it could affect my mortgage with the bank. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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.

Due to the guidance of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in St Fagans prior to retaining lawyers. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. My surveyor advised that some banks will not give a mortgage on this type of home.

It depends who your proposed lender is. Bank of Scotland has different requirements from Nationwide. Should you wish to telephone us we can look into this further via the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in St Fagans. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £300,000 garden flat in St Fagans next week. The freeholder has quoted £360 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in St Fagans?

St Fagans conveyancing on leasehold apartments normally necessitates the buyer’s conveyancer submitting questions for the landlord to answer. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to respond to such questions the majority will be content to do so. They are entitled to charge a reasonable charge for answering enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it is above £800. The administration charge invoiced by the landlord must be sent together with a synopsis of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, otherwise the invoice is not strictly payable. In reality one has little choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to sell the property.

I purchased a garden flat in St Fagans, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding properties in St Fagans with over 90 years remaining are worth £190,000. The ground rent is £65 invoiced annually. The lease ceases on 21st October 2079

With just 61 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £18,100 and £20,800 plus professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.