I own a freehold residence in Irthlingborough but still pay rent, why is this and what is this?

It is rare for properties in Irthlingborough and has limited impact for conveyancing in Irthlingborough but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.

Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges date back hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the establishment of fresh rentcharges from 1977 onwards.

Previous rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a lump sum payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence in 2037 will be extinguished.

Do I have to attend the offices of the solicitor to sign the mortgage deed? If so, I will appoint a lawyer who conducts conveyancing in Irthlingborough so that I can pop in to their offices if necessary.

Whereas this was necessary twenty years ago, the vast majority banks no longer oblige their conveyancing panel solicitor to witness the borrowers signature. It will still be necessary for you to provide identification documents and there are still distinct benefits to using a locally based solicitor, in your case a conveyancing solicitor in Irthlingborough.

I am the sole recipient of my late father’s estate with all property in now in my sole name, including the my former home in Irthlingborough. Conveyancing formalities meant that the Land Registry date was in December. I plan to dispose of the property. I understand that there is a CML 6 month 'rule', meaning my property ownership may be treated the same way as though I had purchased the property in December. Will no one buy the property for half a year?

The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook requires solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." By the strict wording you may be impacted by that. How sensible a view banks take of it, depend on the bank as this provision is primarily there to pick up on the purchase and immediately sell or the flipping of properties.

I currently have a mortgage with TSB for my property in Irthlingborough. Conveyancing was finalised months ago. In the event that I decide to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform TSB?

You must advise TSB prior to letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of TSB’s mortgage conditions. It may be that TSB will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact TSB directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a TSB conveyancing panel lawyer.

I've digested plenty of house buying guides, I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Irthlingborough solicitor - who is on the HSBC conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?

HSBC will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually HSBC will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Irthlingborough surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.

My friend suggested that where I am buying in Irthlingborough I should ask my conveyancer to carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?

This is a search is occasionally included in the estimate for your Irthlingborough conveyancing searches. It is a large document of more than thirty pages, listing and detailing important information about Irthlingborough around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Irthlingborough Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime details, Irthlingborough Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data about Irthlingborough.

I am looking at a couple of apartments in Irthlingborough both have in the region of forty five years left on the lease term. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Irthlingborough is a deteriorating asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it adversely affects the salability of the premises. The majority of purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with under eighty years become less and less marketable. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of premises with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Irthlingborough conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease. They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I own a leasehold flat in Irthlingborough, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Comparable flats in Irthlingborough with over 90 years remaining are worth £206,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2092

With only 66 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £11,400 and £13,200 as well as costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.