I am getting a mortgage offer from Halifax. I intend to retain the legal services of a Licensed Conveyancer in Downe. Does the Halifax Conveyancing panel include Licensed Conveyancers?

The Halifax conveyancing panel is, like many other lenders, represented by the Council or Mortgage Lenders or Building Society Association, open to Licensed Conveyancers regulated by the CLC.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up during conveyancing in Downe?

Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Downe. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

I am downsizing from my property. My previous conveyancers have shut. I am in need of a recommendation of a conveyancing firm. I happen to live in Downe if that makes things easier.

Do use our search tool to help you find a solicitor for your conveyancing in Downe. We have connected thousands of home buyers and sellers with regulated solicitors to ensure that the legalities of their house move goes with a minimum of fuss.

My brother has recommend that I appoint his lawyers for conveyancing in Downe. Do I take his advice?

There are no two ways about it the ideal way to find a conveyancing practitioner is to get recommendations from friends or family who have actually used the firm that you are considering.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Downe with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Downe can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to collate the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ lawyers.
Some Downe leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers put in hand bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors. Many freeholders or managing agents in Downe levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should discover the actual amount of the charges. The management information can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most frequent reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Downe. In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? In particular have you installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Downe state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord approving such changes. If you dont have the consents to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your lawyer before hand. You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this via your lawyers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an as soon as possible that you consider whether the lease term requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

Having spent months of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Downe. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

in cases where there is a missing freeholder or where there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to judgment on the price payable.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Downe property is 1 Southlands Court Southlands Road in September 2013. The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal determined that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 was £30,541 This case affected 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 50.57 years.