What is the optimum way to check that the solicitor handling my conveyancing in Worcestershire is on the bank’sconveyancing panel? I am looking to avoid the situation of having one lawyer for me and one for thus spending £175.00 in further conveyancing charges.

Feel free to make use of the find a lender approved solicitor tool on this page. Pick the mortgage company and type ‘Worcestershire’ or your preferred area and you will see numerous conveyancers based in Worcestershire or nearest you.

Various internet forums that I have frequented warn that are the number one cause of stalling in Worcestershire conveyancing transactions. Is this right?

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) published conclusions of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature amongst the common causes of delays in the conveyancing process. Searches are not likely to be the root cause of holding up conveyancing in Worcestershire.

Me and my brother purchased a 4 bedroom Georgian house in Worcestershire. Conveyancing solicitor represented me and . I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and I saw a couple of entries: the first freehold, another for leasehold with the exact same address. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?

You need to review the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Worcestershire and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they buy they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with lenders. You can also check the situation with the conveyancing practitioner who carried out the work.

I would like to rent out my leasehold flat in Worcestershire. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for permission?

The lease dictates relations between the landlord and you the flat owner; specifically, it will say if subletting is not allowed, or permitted but only subject to certain conditions. The rule is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is permitted. The majority of leases in Worcestershire do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a provision would adversely affect the market value the property. In most cases there is simply a requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly supplying a duplicate of the sublease.

I acquired a ground floor flat in Worcestershire, conveyancing having been completed 1995. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding flats in Worcestershire with over 90 years remaining are worth £165,000. The ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease finishes on 21st October 50

With just 50 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £36,100 and £41,800 as well as legals.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

My 20yr old son is just in the process of moving house, the home loan was agreed last week in principle. After the offer was accepted on house we telephoned the mortgage company to move forward with his. We were disappointed to hear that banks do not accept all , they need to be on their approved list, is this correct?

Lenders normally restrict either the type or the number of conveyancing solicitors on their panel. Typical examples of such restriction(s) being that a firm must have two or more partners. In addition to restricting the type of firm, some have decided to limit the number of firms they use to represent them. You should note that lenders have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any Worcestershire on their panel. Mortgage fraud was a key driver in the rationalisation of conveyancing panels a few years ago and whilst there are differing views about the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Statistics from the Land Registry reveal that thousands of law firms only carry out one or two conveyances a year. Those supporting conveyancing panel cuts ask why law firms should have the right to be on a Lender panel when clearly, conveyancing is not their speciality. To put it another way; would you want a conveyancing solicitor to represent you if you were charged with a crime? Probably not.