I am purchasing a house without a mortgage in Church Village. I have been living for the last dozen years in Church Village. Conveyancing searches are expensive. As I know the road and vicinity intimately must I have all the conveyancing searches?

In the absence of a mortgage, then almost all of the Church Village conveyancing searches are non-obligatory. Your lawyer will 'advise', perhaps strongly, that you should have searches carried out, but she has a professional duty to take that path of guidance. One thing to take into account; if you are intend to dispose of the house one day, it may be of importance to your prospective purchaser what the searches disclose. There are plenty of instances where properties with apparent issues can still throw up unfavourable search results. A competent conveyancing solicitor in Church Village should provide you some practical guidance in this regard.

I am buying a end of terrace house in Church Village. Our aim is to carry out a loft conversion at the property.Will the conveyancing process include checks to ascertain if these alterations were previously refused?

Your conveyancer will review the deeds as conveyancing in Church Village will occasionally reveal restrictions in the title documents which prohibit certain alterations or necessitated the consent of a 3rd party. Certain extensions need local authority planning consent and approval in compliance with building regulations. Certain areas are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which often prevent or impact extensions. It would be wise to check these issues with a surveyor prior to committing yourself to a purchase.

We have a mortgage agreed in principle with Yorkshire BS. Church Village conveyancing solicitors were appointed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from Yorkshire BS?

Some lenders take longer than others. Have Yorkshire BS conducted the valuation? Have you advised Yorkshire BS as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel? Sometimes it can take as long as six weeks for a mortgage offer to be issued.

I was told three weeks ago that my mortgage has been agreed to by Principality. Is it usual for Principality to only issue the offer once my solicitor in Church Village is approved on their conveyancing panel? Principality have asked my solicitor to see a copy of their Professional Indemnity Insurance Schedule.

A lender would not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Principality to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the Principality conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.

Due to the encouragement of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a property in Church Village prior to retaining lawyers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold overhang to the house. My surveyor advised that some lenders tend refuse to issue a mortgage on this type of property.

It varies from the lender to lender. Bank of Scotland has different requirements from Halifax. Should you wish to telephone us we can investigate further with the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Church Village. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Church Village especially if they are familiar with such properties in Church Village.

What are the common defects that you come across in leases for Church Village properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Church Village is not unique. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You may encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Nationwide Building Society, Barnsley Building Society, and TSB all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

I invested in buying a 2 bed flat in Church Village, conveyancing was carried out 9 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Church Village with a long lease are worth £171,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2103

With 79 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £8,600 and £9,800 as well as 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 are not able to provide a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

I am about to complete buying a property in Church Village but as a result of damage from the recent storms I have negotiated compensation from the seller of £3k by way of a reduction in the price. I had intended this to be addressed as part of the conveyancing process however my bank will not agree to this. Should they have been notified?

The solicitor being on a mortgage company approved list is duty bound to disclose to the bank of any variations to the sale figure. If you did not allow your lawyer to report the price change to your lender then they would have to disinstructing themselves from acting for you and the mortgage company.