Is the fact that my solicitor in Watlington is not on my lender's conveyancing panel that there is a problem with the quality of his conveyancing?

That is most likely an incorrect assumption to make. There are plenty of plausible explanations. Just recently a report by the solicitors regulator indicated 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The most common reasons for removal are: (1) lack 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. If you are concerned you should contact the Watlington conveyancing firm and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for your mortgage company.

The Watlington conveyancing lawyers that I recently instructed on my purchase in Watlington have without warning closed. I only went with them because I had to have a solicitor on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel and my preferred Watlington lawyer was not. I gave my credit card details for them to take £195 for searches. What should be my next steps?

Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then inform them straight away 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 Kent Reliance 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 may be able to help.

I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and identified one near me in Watlington I like with open areas and transport links in the vicinity, however it's only got 51 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Watlington suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a short lease?

If you require a mortgage that many years will be problematic. Discount the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the property for at least 2 years you could request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.

I have just appointed agents to market my garden apartment in Watlington. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed, but I have recently received a yearly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is pay the service charge as normal as all rents and maintenance charges 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 management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless 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. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Watlington Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should ask before buying

Make sure you investigate if there are any onerous prohibitions in the lease. By way of example some leases prohibit pets being permitted in in a block in Watlington. If you like the flatin Watlington however your cat is not allowed to move with you then you have a very hard choice. It is important to be aware whether fixing the lift or some other significant cost is due shortly that will be shared amongst the leasehold owners and will materially impact the level of the service costs or necessitate a one time payment. Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge liability?

Can you set examples of specific benefits to selecting a high street conveyancer in Watlington

Many purchasers and sellers in Watlington decide on using a nearby high street property lawyer so that they can pop into the firm’s offices in the event that they have questions, and to collect paperwork rather than depending on the post.

One could say that there exists a marginal benefit when opting for a solicitor local to a premises you are hoping to purchase, due to the familiarity of the locality and potential local issues - however this is moot. The majority of conveyancers are now over the internet and may be almost anywhere.