My fiance and I are hoping to buy a house in Cottesmore and are in fact using a Cottesmore conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. National Westminster Bank have this morning contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Cottesmore conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?

When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Cottesmore lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.

At what point does exchange of contracts happen for domestic conveyancing in Cottesmore and am I required to be at the solicitors office?

If you are in close proximity to one of the conveyancing solicitors in Cottesmore you are welcome to come in to sign documents. However, the law practices we work with offer countrywide coverage for conveyancing and give as equally comprehensive and professional a job for you when communicating with you by post or email. The executing of the sale agreement is not when everything is set in stone. A signed contract simply enables the solicitor to address the formalities at the suitable time, which will usually be very shortly after signing. The procedure is is usually a five minute process, although where a long "chain" is involved, since the process requires the relevant party's solicitor (not necessarily a conveyancing solicitor in Cottesmore)to be in the office at the appropriate time.

Do I need to have a meeting at the offices of the solicitor to execute the legal charge? If so, I will appoint a lawyer who conducts conveyancing in Cottesmore so that I can attend their offices if required.

These days approved lawyers for lenders undertake all of the work via Royal Mail, e-mail or over the phone. This means that they can undertake the conveyancing transaction regardless of where you live in the country. That being said you should see if you have the option of visiting the offices of your conveyancing lawyer if you prefer.

I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold element on a house I have offered on two weeks back in what was supposed to be a simple, no chain conveyancing. Cottesmore is where the house is located. What do you suggest?

Flying freeholds in Cottesmore are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Cottesmore you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Cottesmore may ascertain that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.

I work for a long established estate agent office in Cottesmore where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales put at risk due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Cottesmore conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

Cottesmore Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries before Purchasing

Is anyone aware of any major works in the planning that could add a premium to the maintenance costs? Generally speaking the outlay for major works tend not to be included within service charges, albeit that a few managing agents in Cottesmore require leaseholders to pay into a reserve fund created for the specific purpose of building a fund for major repairs or maintenance. Does the lease contain onerous restrictions?