I am buying a property mortgage free in Berkeley. I have resided for the last 20 years in Berkeley. Conveyancing searches are expensive. As I know the area and road very well must I have all the conveyancing searches?

If you not getting a mortgage, then the vast majority of the Berkeley conveyancing searches are at your discretion. Your solicitor will 'advise', perhaps strongly, that you should have searches done, but she is duty bound to take that path of advice. One thing to bear in mind; if you are intend to dispose of the house at a future date, it could be of importance to your future purchaser what the searches reveal. Sometimes properties with day to day issues can still reveal detrimental search results. A competent conveyancing solicitor in Berkeley will be able to give you some constructive guidance in this regard.

Can your site be used to find a Conveyancing solicitor in Berkeley even if I’m not buying or selling a house, for instance if I wish to acquire an office in Berkeley with a mortgage from Norwich and Peterborough Building Society?

Our search tool is primarily utilised to find residential conveyancing solicitors in Berkeley but we have listed towards the bottom of this page some Berkeley commercial conveyancing firms. You will need to make contact with the company directly to see if they can also act for Norwich and Peterborough Building Society

This question may be naive but I am new to the house moving as a first time purchaser of a garden flat in Berkeley. Do I collect the keys to the property on the completion date from my conveyancer? If this is the case, I will appoint a High Street conveyancing solicitor in Berkeley?

There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Your solicitors will transfer the completion advance to the vendor’s solicitors, and shortly after the monies have arrived, you should be called to pick up the keys from the Estate Agents and start moving into the property. This tends to happen between 1 and 3pm.

We are planning to move property in December. Should my conveyancing solicitor update the removal company on the day of completion. On a separate note, can you recommend a removal company in Berkeley. Conveyancing firm was organised before I stumbled across this website.

On the day of completion you can pick up the house keys from the selling agent however this can only occur once the previous owners lawyers confirm to the agent that they acknowledge receipt of the completion payment and the keys can be given over. After that you can tell the removal company that you are ready to move in. We are not in a position to suggest a particular removal company but can help you find a residential property solicitor in Berkeley or a lawyer with expertise in conveyancing in Berkeley.

Please help - my lawyer advises that absentee landlord insurance is required on my purchase. What is the typical level of cover needed for conveyancing in Berkeley?

The right level of absentee landlord indemnity insurance should be dictated by who your lender. It would differ for example between Barclays and Norwich and Peterborough Building Society. Conveyancing solicitors as opposed to borrowers take out such insurances.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Berkeley. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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 be sure 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 acquired a 2 bed flat in Berkeley, conveyancing was carried out in 2003. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Comparable properties in Berkeley with an extended lease are worth £190,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease ends on 21st October 2086

With 62 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £17,100 and £19,800 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.

We have chosen a Berkeley conveyancing solicitor for our home move (first time buyers) and have spotted in the Ts and Cs that they are not overseen by the Financial Conduct Authority. Am I right to be concerned or is that standard with solicitor?

We can't see why they should be. Most lawyer don't lend money. They will be governed by the SRA, who set stringent conditions in relation to funds sitting by them.