There are plenty of conveyancing solicitors in City Of London but how do I know who's good?

Do not opt for the cheapest City Of London conveyancing quote. You really do get what you pay for when it comes to property lawyers. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you go into the conveyancing with your eyes wide open.

I am assisting my aunt sell her house in City Of London. Will the conveyancer order an EPC or it is for the seller to coordinate?

Following the demise of HIPs, EPC’s remained a mandatory part of selling a house. An EPC must be commissioned before the property is marketed. This is not something that lawyers normally arrange. If you are instructing a City Of London conveyancing solicitor they may help arrange energy assessments given their contacts with long established City Of London accredited person

I am purchasing a property in City Of London. A rare aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Solicitors conducting should look into this right? Will my lender Yorkshire BS be concerned?

Given that your lender is Yorkshire BS your lawyer must follow the conveyancing requirements set out in Part two of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Yorkshire BS. The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook includes minimum requirements for solar panel roof-space leases, and conveyancers are required to report to Yorkshire BS where a lease does not satisfy these conditions. The conditions relate to the installation of panels on properties in England and Wales and is not limited to City Of London.

My business partner and I are intending to take over a lease of a shop on the high street. Can you recommend lawyers offering fixed fees for commercial conveyancing in City Of London for less than 1500k?

We can recommend firms who have an in-depth of experience of commercial conveyancing in City Of London, including the sale and acquisition of businesses as well as simply property. Whether you are intending to acquire or dispose of a shop, pub, restaurant, office, retail unit or a whole business we will put you in touch with the right firm. Regarding the costs this will depend on the structure and complexity of the proposed transaction. Please provide us with your contact information or phone us so that we can supply you with comprehensive commercial conveyancing calculation.

As co-executor for the estate of my father I am selling a house in Cardiff but live in City Of London. My solicitor (based 300 miles from merequires that I sign a stat dec ahead of the transaction finalising. Could you suggest a conveyancing practitioner in City Of London to attest this legal document for me?

strictly speaking you should not be required to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Normally any notary public or solicitor will suffice regardless of whether they are based in City Of London

Last June I purchased a leasehold house in City Of London. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee 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. It is an essential part 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 own a 1st floor flat in City Of London, conveyancing formalities finalised April 2010. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Equivalent flats in City Of London with a long lease are worth £216,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2093

With only 69 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 plus professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.

Is there a reason that City Of London conveyancing fees differ for leasehold and freehold properties?

When buying a leasehold property there is more work involved purely due to the fact that usually there are further parties involved in the form of the freeholder and/or Management Agents. As part of a lawyers enquiries they will check that all ground rent and service charges are paid up to date amongst other general leasehold matters. For this reason, the Sellers lawyers usually have to refer to the freeholder or Managing Agent for their replies to our questions. This may be time consuming and beyond the lawyers control