I am selling my flat in Linslade. Does the conveyancer need to be on the UBS conveyancing panel in order to deal with the discharge of my mortgage?

Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the UBS conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. It might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their panel criteria fairly frequently in recent years.

My colleague recommended that if I am buying in Linslade I should ask my conveyancer to carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?

A search of this type is usually quoted for as part of the standard Linslade conveyancing searches. It is a large document of more than thirty pages, listing and detailing important information about Linslade around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime details, Linslade Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information concerning Linslade.

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

Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Linslade. 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…’

In searching the world wide web for the words conveyancing in Linslade it brings up many property lawyerslocally. With so much choice what is the best way to find the right conveyancer for me?

The ideal way of finding a suitable conveyancer is through a personal testimonial, so enquire of colleagues and relatives who have bought a property in Linslade or the reputable estate agent or mortgage broker. Fees for conveyancing in Linslade vary, so it's a good idea to obtain at least four fee estimates from varying types of property lawyers. Make sure that you clarify that the fees are fixed.

There are only Seventy years left on my flat in Linslade. I now want to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What are my options?

If you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be lengthened by the Court. You will be obliged to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have used your best endeavours to find the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent would be useful to conduct investigations and prepare a report to be accepted by the court as evidence that the freeholder can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer both on investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court covering Linslade.

I inherited a split level flat in Linslade, conveyancing was carried out in 1998. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent flats in Linslade with an extended lease are worth £227,000. The ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2096

You have 72 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 plus professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.