My partner and I are buying our first home. The lawyer has contact usto enquire if we want to order extra conveyancing searches. As novices we are clueless as to what's appropriate for conveyancing in Burnham On Crouch

The scope of Burnham On Crouch conveyancing searches depends primarily on the premises, the location, the probability of any of these risks, your familiarity of the region and risks, your overall appetite to risk. What is important is that you adequately comprehend what information each search could provide. Then you can decide if you consider that you need that information. Where you are unclear, ask the solicitor to explain.

We are purchasing a 3 bedroom semi in Burnham On Crouch. We would like to carry out a loft conversion at the house.Will legal work on the property involve checks to determine if these works were previously refused?

Your conveyancer should review the deeds as conveyancing in Burnham On Crouch will occasionally identify restrictions in the title deeds which prohibit certain works or necessitated the consent of a 3rd party. Many extensions call for local authority planning permissions and approval in compliance with building regulations. Some locations are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which frequently prevent or impact extensions. You should check these issues with a surveyor before you commit yourself to a purchase.

I had a mortgage agreed in principle with HSBC. Burnham On Crouch conveyancing lawyers have been selected. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from HSBC?

There is no definitive answer here. Have HSBC conducted the valuation? Have you informed HSBC as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the HSBC conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.

We were going to get a DIP from Principality this week so we know how much we could potentially offer as otherwise we only have online calculators to go by (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do Principality recommend any Burnham On Crouch solicitors on the Principality conveyancing panel, or is it better to go independently?

You will need to appoint Burnham On Crouch solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Principality conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and Principality through the process.

The estate agent has sent us the confirmation of our purchase of a new build flat in Burnham On Crouch. Conveyancing is necessary evil at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build legal work.

Set out below are examples of a selection of leasehold new build questions that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Burnham On Crouch

Where service of notices and proceedings can be at the property demised please confirm that this can be amended to include simultaneous services at the Lessees’ solicitors’ offices where the Lessee from time to time is not resident in the UK - such solicitors may be varied by notice in writing to the Landlord from time to time but otherwise will be as previously specified. Will the freehold then be transferred for a nominal consideration (not exceeding £100) to the Management Company? Investor purchasers must be able to freely grant unsecured tenancies at market rents without requiring any consents. Where there is an Undertaking being granted there is the risk of forfeiture of the Headlease subject to relief if one or more of the Underlessees are willing to accept the original Head Lessee’s obligations as otherwise relief will be denied to the Underlessees. The only alternatives are the Head Lessor agreeing not to forfeit the Headlease or the Head Lessee guaranteeing to the Underlessees that it will not be in breach of the Headlease. If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal.

I decided to have a survey done on a property in Burnham On Crouch ahead of appointing conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold element to the house. Our surveyor has said that some lenders tend not grant a loan on this type of house.

It varies from the lender to lender. HSBC has different requirements for example to Nationwide. If you call us we can check with the relevant bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Burnham On Crouch. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agency in Burnham On Crouch where we see a number of flat sales jeopardised as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Burnham On Crouch conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the seller of a flat can instigate 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 kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

Burnham On Crouch Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

The prefered form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this situation the leaseholders have being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is usually retained where the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves. How many years are left on the lease? It is important to be aware if fixing the lift or some other major work is due in the foreseeable future to be shared amongst the tenants and will dramatically increase the the service charges or require a specific payment.