There are plenty of conveyancing solicitors in Guildford but how do I know who I should use?

Do not opt for the cheapest Guildford conveyancing quote. You really do get what you pay for when it comes to conveyancing solicitors. 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 know exactly what you’ll have to pay in ahead of time.

is it true that all Guildford solicitor practices on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel are regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority?

As solicitors, in order to be on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel they would need to be governed by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. The majority of mortgage companies do list licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such firms would be overseen by the CLC.

I recently had an offer agreed on an apartment in Guildford. My financial adviser recommended their conveyancers. I paid an on account payment of £200. Not long after, the solicitor called me to say that they were not on the Skipton conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?

You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Skipton panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.

Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my property can not be found. The lawyers who did the conveyancing in Guildford 5 years ago no longer exist. What are my options?

Gone are the days when you need to hold title original deeds to establish that you are the owner of your registered land or premises, as the Land Registry hold details of all registered land or property electronically.

I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £305k and identified one round the corner in Guildford I like with amenity areas and station in the vicinity, however it's only got 49 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Guildford in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a short lease?

Should you need a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term may be an issue. Reduce the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer concerning this.

Do I need to be concerned about 3rd parties that I am dealing with are suggesting a web based conveyancing firm rather than a local Guildford conveyancing company?

As with lots of professional services, often suggestions from relatives can be extremely useful or valuable. Yet there are many parties with a keen interest in a conveyancing deal; estate agents, mortgage brokers and banks might all suggest solicitors to select. Sometimes the conveyancers might be known to one of the organisations as one of the best in their field, but occasionally there exists a financial incentive behind the endorsement. You are free to appoint your own lawyer. You need to be aware that the majority of lenders specify a panel list of lawyers you must use for the lender aspect of your house move.

I own a leasehold flat in Guildford. Conveyancing and Leeds Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Guildford who previously acted has long since retired. What should I do?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Guildford conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I bought a split level flat in Guildford, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent flats in Guildford with over 90 years remaining are worth £190,000. The ground rent is £45 per annum. The lease ceases on 21st October 2086

With only 62 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £17,100 and £19,800 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.