Some advice if I may. My Stafford lawyer is informing me me that she is duty bound toconduct Stafford conveyancing searches becausethe firm are on the Virgin Moneyapproved lawyer panel. Is my solicitor right?

You have limited options available to you. As you are taking a mortgage with a bank your conveyancing practitioner has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the CML Conveyancing Handbook. Your conveyancing practitioner would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of your lender’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to comply with the CML Handbook requirements . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Stafford conveyancing searches.

We are purchasing a house in Stafford. I might seem paranoid but how we can trust a solicitor? On completion day we have to deposit our life savings into their account. What protection do we have from them run away with our monies?

Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.

My lawyer has informed me that lack of building regulations insurance is needed on my purchase. What is the typical level of cover needed for conveyancing in Stafford?

The right level of lack of building regulations indemnity insurance should be dictated by who who your lender is. It would differ for example between National Westminster Bank and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society. Conveyancing solicitors as opposed to borrowers take out such policies.

The formalities of my purchase has taken place for my property in Stafford. Conveyancing was satisfactory but I would like to complain about the lender. How does one go about formally complaining?

All lenders have complaints procedures. Your first port of call should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Services Team at head office. Ordinarily complaints to a lender are sorted out effectively and efficiently. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service with full details of your complaint.

My friend advised me that where I am buying in Stafford I should ask my conveyancer to carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?

A search of this type is usually quoted for as part of the standard Stafford conveyancing searches. It is not a small document of more than thirty pages, listing and detailing important information about Stafford around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Stafford Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime details, Local Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data about Stafford.

I have just appointed agents to market my basement apartment in Stafford. Conveyancing has not commenced, however I have recently received a half-yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

It best that you clear the invoice as normal because all rents and maintenance invoices will be allotted on completion, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Stafford - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Does the lease include onerous restrictions? The answer will be useful as a) areas may result in problems in the block as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate if services are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have a dispute with the running of the building you will wish to have all the details Many Stafford leasehold properties will have a service charge for maintenance of the block set on behalf of the management company. Where you purchase the flat you will have to meet this contribution, usually periodically throughout the year. This can be anything from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for blocks with lifts and large common areas. In all likelihood there will be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a significant sum, say approximately £50-£100 but you should to check it because occasionally it can be many hundreds of pounds.

I need to swap lawyers as my Stafford lawyer is not on the bank's approved list of conveyancing solicitors. Is it advisable to appoint a new law firm?

In the event that you have not formally appointed a solicitor to start work and at this stage simply received quotes, you're perfectly free to choose a different solicitor to carry out your work for you. The best way is to get recommendations from friends or family who have actually used the solicitor or conveyancer in Stafford that you're thinking of instructing.