We are buying a house and need a conveyancing solicitor in Aldridge who is on the Yorkshire BS approved panel. Can you recommend a local conveyancing firm?

Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Yorkshire BS . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in Aldridge.

Is it the case that all Aldridge CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors are on the RBS conveyancing panel?

It is true that some lenders now use the accreditation scheme as the kick off point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. CQS membership however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. Nevertheless,the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitor practices wishing to remain on their approved list of conveyancing solicitors.

After much negotiation I have agreed a price on a house in Aldridge. My mortgage broker recommended their conveyancers. I paid an upfront payment of £175. Not long after, the conveyancer contacted me to say that they were not on the Santander 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 Santander 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.

My sealed bid on a house in Aldridge has been agreed to, the vendors do nevertheless have a connected purchase. The sellers have offered on somewhere, however it’s not yet agreed to, and have viewings of other properties booked. I have selected a bricks and mortar conveyancing solicitor in Aldridge. What do I do now? At what point do I apply for the mortgage with Bank of Ireland?

It is normal to have anxieties where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur costs prematurely (home loan application is approx £1k, then valuation, Aldridge conveyancing search costs, etc). First, you must ensure that your conveyancer is on the Bank of Ireland approved list. Regarding the subsequent phase this very much depends on the circumstances of your transaction, desire for this property and on the state of the market. In a buoyant market some home buyers would apply for a home loan with Bank of Ireland and arrange for the valuation and only if it was satisfactory would they request their conveyancing practitioner to proceed with the conveyancing in Aldridge.

I am looking into buying my first house which is in Aldridge and I am already nervous. I couldn't find anything specific about Aldridge. Conveyancing will be needed in due course but do you know about the Aldridge area? or perhaps some other tips you can share?

Rather than looking online forget looking online you should go and have a look at Aldridge. In the meantime here are some basic statistics that we found

In sourcing the web for the words conveyancing in Aldridge it reveals numerous property lawyersin the vicinity. How do I determine which is the right solicitor for my move?

The preferential way of choosing a suitable conveyancer is via trusted recommendation, so enquire of colleagues and family who have acquired a property in Aldridge or a respected estate agent or financial adviser. Charges for conveyancing in Aldridge differ, so it's a good idea to secure a minimum of three quotes from varying types of property lawyers. Make sure that you know that the costs are guaranteed not to rise.

I am looking at a couple of apartments in Aldridge which have in the region of 50 years unexpired on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Aldridge. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the value of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more costly to extend the lease. This is why it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be unwilling to lend money on such properties. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena.

I am the registered owner of a 1st floor flat in Aldridge, conveyancing having been completed April 1997. How much will my lease extension cost? Equivalent flats in Aldridge with a long lease are worth £176,000. The ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease terminates on 21st October 2104

You have 80 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £8,600 and £9,800 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.