I have given 8 weeks notice to my current landlord and must be out of my rented apartment in Uckfield by 29/1/2024. Conveyancing on my purchase has just started. Is it possible to complete in six weeks as don't want to have to move into temporary accommodation?

It is unwise to serve notice on a rental until you have exchanged. If you have not previously done so, speak to your conveyancer and ask them to they chase the sellers solicitors, try to a target completion date that everyone will work to achieve

A friend suggested that if I am purchasing in Uckfield 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 Uckfield conveyancing searches. It is not a small document of more than thirty pages, listing and detailing important information about Uckfield around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime statistics, Local Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information about Uckfield.

I'm purchasing my first flat in Uckfield benefiting from help to buy. The sellers would not reduce the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of extras instead. The property agent advised me not reveal to my solicitor about this deal as it will adversely affect my mortgage with the lender. 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.

Over the last few months I have been searching for a ground for flat up to £195,000 and identified one near me in Uckfield I like with open areas and station nearby, the downside is that it's only got 49 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Uckfield in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?

If you need a home loan that many years will likely be problematic. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you could request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer about this.

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agency in Uckfield where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Uckfield conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease 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 buyer need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 buyer.

Uckfield Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

How is the lease structured? You should be aware that where the lease has no more than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the property. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are happy with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will most likely have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of what this would cost. Remember, in most cases you will be required to have owned the premises for two years before you are entitled to extend the lease. How much is the service charge and ground rent on the property?