I am need of leasehold conveyancing for a flat in a relatively new development (five years old) in Wragby. Almost all the flats have already been sold. Do I need carry out the conveyancing searches for my conveyancing in Wragby?

You would be putting yourself at risk in not carrying out Wragby conveyancing searches. Without searches you have no clarity over flooding, environmental etc which may mean you walk away due to potential problems down the line. If you are buying without a mortgage there is no legal requirement to have them, but we would strongly advise in no uncertain terms that your conveyancer conducts them. If speed and cost are primary issues you should discuss with your solicitor about the viability of search insurance

Do banks and building societies provide you with an approved list of Wragby conveyancing solicitors? How do you know who is on the Santander conveyancing panel?

Wragby conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Santander conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Santander directly.

Forgive me if this question is silly but I am new to the home buying as FTB of a two bedroom flat in Wragby. Do I pick up the keys to the premises on completion from my solicitor? If so, I will use a High Street conveyancing solicitor in Wragby?

There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Conveyancing lawyers for you will transfer the purchase money to the owner’s conveyancers, and shortly after the monies have arrived, you should be able to collect the keys from the property Agents and move into your new home. This tends to happen early afternoon.

I have decided to exercise my right to buy my property in Wragby off the council. I have a mortgage offer with Aldermore. Conveyancing is new to me. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should have one. Any advice?

It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with Aldermore, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Aldermore conveyancing panel.

I recently had an offer agreed on an apartment in Wragby. My mortgage broker pressured me to appoint their solicitor. I paid an on account payment of £225. Shortly after, the conveyancer contacted me to say that they were not on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?

You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Virgin Money panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.

I used Stirling Law several years past for my conveyancing in Wragby. Now, I need the files but the law firm has closed. What do I do?

You should contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Wragby of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously hired, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

I own a leasehold flat in Wragby. Conveyancing was finalised in 2010. I have been told that I should not allow the lease length fall too low. Why is that a problem?

Wragby domestic long term leases are for a prescribed term - often 99 years when they commenced. However many appartments in Wragby were built or converted in the 60’s and so these leases now have fewer than 80 years left to run. This may seem like plenty of time but Banks, Building Societies and other mortgage companies on the whole need leases to have a minimum of seventy five years left to adequate security. This means that when you come to sell the property you will need a lease extension if you are nearing 75 years. To maximise the saleability of your property you should be considering whether or not to extend your lease well in advance of selling the property. There are also significant benefits to taking action before the lease reaches even eighty years as when the lease is less than eighty years the premium to be paid to extend starts to increase.