We're in Cirencester, First timers purchasing with a mortgage (lender is Coventry BS , and our solicitor is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel). How long should the conveyancing process take?

The fact that your lawyer is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel is a help. It would almost certainly delay matters if they were not. However, no lawyer should guarantee a timeframe for your conveyancing, due to third parties outside of your control such as delays caused by lenders,conveyancing search providers or by the other side’s solicitors. The time taken is often determined by the number of parties in a chain.

My friend suggested that if I am purchasing in Cirencester I should carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?

This is a search is occasionally included in the estimate for your Cirencester conveyancing searches. It is a large report of about 40 pages, listing and detailing important information about Cirencester around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime details, Cirencester Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information about Cirencester.

I have todaydiscovered that Stirling Law have been shut down. They carried out my conveyancing in Cirencester for a purchase of a leasehold flat 18 months ago. How can I establish that my home is registered correctly in the name of the previous owner?

The easiest method to check if the property is in your name, you can carry out a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Cirencester conveyancing specialists.

I was advised by numerous property agents in Cirencester to choose a solicitor on your site. What’s the financial upside for Estate Agents to recommend your site rather than another?

We don’t offer any referral fee for directing people our way. We thought it would be too underhand a fee because a client could think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not getting any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have since found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Cirencester. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Cirencester ?

Most houses in Cirencester are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Cirencester in which case you should be looking for a Cirencester conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a tenant you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions such as requiring the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

Cirencester Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Questions you should ask Prior to Purchasing

Its a good idea to find out as much as possible about the managing agents as they can either make living at the property much easier or uncomfortable. As the owner of a leasehold property you are often at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to daily matters like the cleanliness of the communal areas. Ask other people whether they are happy with them. Finally, investigate as to the dates that the service fees are due to the appropriate party and precisely what you get for your money. The best form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the tenants benefit from being in charge if their destiny and even though a managing agent is frequently employed if the building is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves. Please note if it is fewer than 80 years it will impact the salability of the flat. It is worth checking with your bank that they are content with residual term of the lease. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will almost definitely require a lease extension sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering what this would cost. For most Cirencesterlease extensions you will be be obliged to have owned the premises for two years in order to be eligible to extend the lease.