My property lawyer in Dereham has never been on on the Coventry Building Society Conveyancing Panel. Is it possible for me to continue with my prefered solicitor notwithstanding that they are excluded from the Coventry Building Society panel?

The limited options available to you here include:

1. Complete the purchase with your preferred Dereham solicitors but Coventry Building Society will need to retain a lawyer on their list of acceptable firms. This will result in additional overall conveyancing fees as well as result in frustration.
2. Get an alternative practitioner to act in the conveyancing, obviously checking they are Coventry Building Society approved.
3. Try to convince your Coventry Building Society based solicitor to attempt to join the Coventry Building Society panel

What can a local search reveal about the property I am buying in Dereham?

Dereham conveyancing often starts with the applying for local authority searches directly from your local Authority or through a personal search organisations such as Xpress Legal The local search plays an important part in many a Dereham conveyancing purchase; that is if you don’t want any nasty surprises after you move into your property. The search will provide data on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the premises (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 subject headings.

I'm buying my first flat in Dereham with a loan from TSB. The developers would not budge the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of extras instead. The property agent told me not reveal to my conveyancer about this deal as it will put at risk my loan with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

Due to the input of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a property in Dereham ahead of instructing solicitors. I have been told that there is a flying freehold element to the house. The surveyor has said that some mortgage companies tend not give a mortgage on such a house.

It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different requirements for example to Halifax. If you contact us we can check via the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Dereham. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Dereham to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of flats in Dereham which have in the region of 50 years unexpired on the lease term. should I be concerned?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold flat in Dereham is a wasting asset as a result of the reducing lease term. The nearer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it adversely affects the value of the premises. The majority of purchasers and mortgage companies, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a property with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Dereham conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease. You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Dereham - Examples of Questions you should consider before buying

It would be prudent to find out as much as you can regarding the company managing the building as they will either make living at the property much easier or uncomfortable. Being a leasehold owner you will be at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to every day issues like the upkeep of the communal areas. Enquire of prospective neighbours if they are happy with their management. Finally, investigate as to the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the managing agents and precisely what you get for your money. How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their service charge payments?