There are numerous conveyancing solicitors in Rotherhithe but how do I know who's good?

We would encourage you not to go for the lowest Rotherhithe conveyancing fees. You really do get what you pay for when it comes to conveyancing solicitors. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you know exactly what you’ll have to pay in advance.

I am being told by my solicitor that chancel insurance is required on my purchase. What is the level of cover for Rotherhithe conveyancing?

The right level of chancel indemnity insurance depends on your lender. It would differ for example between Birmingham Midshires and Skipton Building Society. Conveyancing lawyers as opposed to borrowers take out such policies.

I'm at the point of viewing apartments in Rotherhithe and I am now considering a potential offer. Should I already have a lawyer in place at this stage? I intend to finance via a home loan with Kent Reliance.

You should start obtaining conveyancing quotes from solicitors ASAP. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their contact information on to the estate agent. Given that you are taking out a mortgage with Kent Reliance, make sure you remember to check that your lawyer is on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel.

How does conveyancing in Rotherhithe differ for newly converted properties?

Most buyers of new build premises in Rotherhithe approach us having been asked by the housebuilder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the property is completed. This is because new home sellers in Rotherhithe tend to buy the land, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancing solicitors as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Rotherhithe or who has acted in the same development.

I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £235,500 and identified one round the corner in Rotherhithe I like with a park and railway links in the vicinity, however it only has 61 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Rotherhithe for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a short lease?

If you need a mortgage the shortness of the lease will be problematic. Discount the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you could request that they start the process of the extension and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.

Am I better off to go with a Rotherhithe conveyancing lawyer in close proximity to the house I am buying? We have a good friend who can perform the legal formalities but his firm is located approximately 350kilometers away.

The benefit of a local Rotherhithe conveyancing firm is that you can pop in to execute paperwork, hand in your identification documents and apply pressure on them if necessary. Having local Rotherhithe know how is a bonus. That being said it's more important to get someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If if people you trust used your friend and in the main were content that should trump using an unfamiliar Rotherhithe conveyancing lawyer just because they are based in the area.

Is planning consent necessary to convert a house into two appartments in Rotherhithe? This has been done to a property next door to my house in Rotherhithe and was unaware of the conversion until it was complete.

Planning permission is required for splitting a single house in Rotherhithe into apartments but probably not for reverting once again to single dwelling-house so, simply put, yes.