Why is leasehold purchase conveyancing in Oxfordshire is more expensive?

In short, leasehold conveyancing in Oxfordshire and elsewhere usually requires extra due diligence compared to freehold conveyancing. This includes reviewing the lease, corresponding with the landlord concerning the service of applicable notices, procuring current service charge and management information, securing the freeholder’s consents and reviewing management accounts. The obligations on both the landlord and the tenant in the lease need to be studied by the buyer’s conveyancing team and read from beginning to end – regardless of the fact the lease has passed through many different property solicitors hands since it was first granted.

The mortgage over my property is with Santander for my property in Oxfordshire. Conveyancing was finalised some time ago. In the event that I decide to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Santander?

Your original mortgage agreement with Santander will provide that you need their approval before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Santander’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Santander 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 Santander directly. You need not do this via a Santander conveyancing panel solicitor.

After weeks of negotiation I have agreed a price on an apartment in Oxfordshire. My mortgage broker suggested a property lawyer. I paid an upfront payment of £175. Soon after, the conveyancer called me embarrassingly acknowledging that they were not on the Nottingham 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 Nottingham 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.

Planning on purchasing a house in Oxfordshire. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Building Society if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the TSB conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.

They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Oxfordshire property lawyer is on the TSB conveyancing panel.

I have been told that property searches are the number one reason for stalling in Oxfordshire conveyancing transactions. Is that correct?

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) has noted the determinations of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not figure amongst the common causes of hindrances during the legal transfer of property. Local searches are unlikely to feature in any holding up conveyancing in Oxfordshire.

I'm buying a new build house in Oxfordshire benefiting from help to buy. The sellers would not budge the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of fixtures and fittings instead. The house builders rep suggested that I not reveal to my conveyancer about this side-deal as it may put at risk my mortgage with the bank. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

I've recently bought a leasehold property in Oxfordshire. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I invested in buying a 1st floor flat in Oxfordshire, conveyancing formalities finalised June 2008. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Oxfordshire with an extended lease are worth £211,000. The ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease finishes on 21st October 2094

With only 68 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to span between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as legals.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.