Will my conveyancing lawyers need to check that the building insurance when buying a house in Baschurch. My lender is Chelsea Building Society

Chelsea Building Society have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook. As of 15/11/2024, the requirements read as follows :

My colleague suggested that if I am buying in Baschurch I should ask my conveyancer to execute a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?

A search of this type is usually quoted for as part of the standard Baschurch conveyancing searches. It is not a small report of more than thirty pages, listing and setting out significant information about Baschurch around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Baschurch Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime details, Local Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data about Baschurch.

Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my property can not be found. The lawyers who handled the conveyancing in Baschurch 5 years ago are no longer around. What are my next steps?

Assuming the title is registered the details of your proprietorship will be retained by the Land Registry under a Title Number. It is easy to conduct a search at the Land Registry, find your property and get up to date copies of the property title for a small fee. Where the title is Leasehold then the Land Registry will in most cases hold a file copy of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be obtained for twenty pounds.

I decided to have a survey carried out on a property in Baschurch prior to appointing solicitors. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold aspect to the house. Our surveyor advised that some lenders may refuse to give a loan on this type of premises.

It depends who your proposed lender is. Bank of Scotland has different requirements for example to Nationwide. Should you wish to telephone us we can check with the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Baschurch. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Baschurch especially if they are accustomed to such properties in Baschurch.

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Baschurch from the point of view of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Baschurch can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers’ lawyers.
The majority of landlords or managing agents in Baschurch levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Baschurch. If you have carried out any alterations to the property would they have required Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Baschurch leases often stipulate that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring calls for a licence issued by the Landlord approving such changes. Where you fail to have the approvals in place you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer first. You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be wise to double-check via your lawyers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is below 80 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale. If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is essential that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a property where a dispute is ongoing. You may need to swallow your pride and pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose details of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to reveal the dispute as over as opposed to ongoing.

Baschurch Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Who takes charge for maintaining and repairing the building? Are there any major works anticipated that could increase the maintenance costs?