Last December we completed a house move in Earls Court. We have since encountered a number of issues with the house which we believe were overlooked in the conveyancing searches. What action can we take? What searches should? have been conducted as part of conveyancing in Earls Court?

It is not clear from the question as to the nature of the problems and if they are specific to conveyancing in Earls Court. Conveyancing searches and due diligence undertaken as part of the legal transfer of property are supposed to help avoid problems. As part of the legal transfer of property, a property owner answers a form called a SPIF. answers turns out to be misleading, you could possibly take legal action against the seller for any losses that you have suffered. The survey should have identified any problems with the structure of the property. Assuming a detailed survey was carried out and the issues were not identified, you may have a claim against the surveyor. However, if you did not have a full survey, you may be responsible for fixing any defects that have now been noted. We would always encourage buyers to take every possible step to ensure they are completely aware of the condition of a property before purchase regardless of whether they are buying in Earls Court.

Is there a reason why leasehold purchase conveyancing in Earls Court costs more?

The conveyancing charges for a leasehold premises in Earls Court is inevitably more expensive when contrasted to a freehold property. This is because there is an amount of extra work necessary in communicating with the freeholder and management company to obtain information about whether the rent and service charges have been cleared and whether there are any significant expenditure in the near future on repairs or maintenance of the block.

We are buying a house and the solicitor has identified Chancel Repair to which the house could be liable given it’s proximity to the area of such a church. She has recommended insurance. Is this really required for conveyancing in Earls Court

Unless a previous acquisition of the property completed after 12 October 2013 you may assume that conveyancing practitioners carrying out conveyancing in Earls Court to continue to suggest a chancel search and or insurance against a claim.

I used Arc property Solicitors several years past for my conveyancing in Earls Court. I now require my papers however the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?

Do call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Earls Court of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously retained, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

I'm purchasing a new build house in Earls Court benefiting from help to buy. The sellers refused to budge the price so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The property agent suggested that I not reveal to my solicitor about this side-deal as it could affect my loan with the bank. 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.