Just contacted my conveyancing solicitor in Anstey who conducted the legals two years ago asking for a conveyancing costs illustration based on the same type of home move (a leasehold residence and a freehold property) of similar values with a mortgage from Chelsea Building Society. It looks as though am now being quoted twice the amount. Am I right to be tempted to shop around for a cheaper online property lawyer?

The estimate does seem a tad steep. If you you were to look around you could trim some of the expense by say £100 plus VAT. That being said, assuming were content with the assistance the firm offered you maycome to rue opting for an an untested conveyancer. Remember to enquire that the conveyancer can represent Chelsea Building Society. Do employ our search tool to select a Anstey conveyancing firm on the Chelsea Building Society member panel, which can often include conveyancing solicitors in Anstey.

I am the registered owner of a freehold property in Anstey yet invoiced for rent, why is this and what is this?

It’s unusual for properties in Anstey and has limited impact for conveyancing in Anstey 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 new rentcharges post 1977.

Old rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence post 2037 will be dispensed with completely.

The Anstey conveyancing lawyers that just started acting on my purchase in Anstey have suddenly shut down. They were on acting for me because I needed a firm on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel and my previous Anstey lawyer was not. I paid them funds on account. What should be my next steps?

If you have an estate agent involved then let them know immediately so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers should be in a position to assist.

I require fast conveyancing in Anstey as I am under pressure to complete inside 3 weeks. A home loan is not required. Can I escape the need for conveyancing searches to save fees and time?

As you are are a cash purchaser you have the choice not to do searches although no conveyancer would recommend that you don't. Drawing on our experience of conveyancing in Anstey the following are examples of what can crop up and therefore impact market value: Enforcement Actions, Overdue Fees, Outstanding Grants, Unadopted Roads,...

I used Action Conveyancing a few years ago for my conveyancing in Anstey. Now, I need my documents but the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?

You should contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Anstey of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously hired, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.