As a first time buyer what is the most important number one tip you can impart regarding purchase conveyancing in Llandaff North?

You may not hear this from too many lawyers but conveyancing in Llandaff North or throughout England and Wales is often a confrontational experience. In other words, when it comes to conveyancing there exists plenty of opportunity for confrontation between you and other parties involved in the ownership transfer. For example, the seller, selling agent and on occasion the lender. Choosing a law firm for your conveyancing in Llandaff North should not be taken lightly as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the ONE person in the process whose interest is to look after your best interests and to protect you.

There is a distinct ongoing adversarial element to conveyancing- someone has to be at fault for the process being so protracted. We recommend that you your first instinct should be to trust your solicitor ahead of all other players in the home moving process.

I happen to be the sole beneficiary of my late grandmother’s estate and I have everything in my name now, including the my former home in Llandaff North. Conveyancing formalities meant that the Land Registry date was in December. I now wish to sell up. I do know about the Mortgage Lenders six month 'rule', meaning my proprietorship will be treated the same way as though I had purchased the house in December. Do I have to wait half a year to sell?

The CML handbook requires conveyancers to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." By the strict wording you could be caught by that. Most mortgage companies would take a sensible view as this clause is principally there to capture subsales or the wholesaling and assigning of properties.

The mortgage over my property is with Clydesdale for my property in Llandaff North. Conveyancing was finalised months ago. Should I wish to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Clydesdale?

You must advise Clydesdale prior to letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Clydesdale’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Clydesdale will permit you to let out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Clydesdale directly. You need not do this via a Clydesdale conveyancing panel lawyer.

After what seems like an age I have had an offer on a flat in Llandaff North agreed to, the owners do nevertheless have a connected purchase. The sellers have placed an offer on on an apartment, however it’s not been accepted yet, and are looking at other apartments booked. I have chosen a nearby conveyancing solicitor in Llandaff North. What do I do now? At what stage should I apply for the mortgage with Lloyds?

It is normal to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket too early (home loan application is in the region of one thousand pounds, then survey, Llandaff North conveyancing search charges, etc). The first thing to do is ensure that your property lawyer is on the Lloyds approved list. As to the next stages this very much dictated by the circumstances of your case, motivation for this property and on the state of the market. In a hot market many purchasers would apply for the mortgage with Lloyds and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they request their property lawyer to proceed with the conveyancing in Llandaff North.

Should my lawyer be asking questions regarding flooding as part of the conveyancing in Llandaff North.

Flooding is a growing risk for lawyers dealing with homes in Llandaff North. Plenty of people will buy a property in Llandaff North, fully expectant that at some time, it may be flooded. However, leaving to one side the physical damage, where a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, satisfactory insurance cover, or dispose of the premises. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.

Conveyancers are not qualified to impart advice on flood risk, but there are a various searches that can be undertaken by the buyer or by their lawyers which will give them a better appreciation of the risks in Llandaff North. The conventional set of completed inquiry forms sent to a buyer’s conveyancer (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) includes a usual inquiry of the owner to discover if the premises has suffered from flooding. In the event that the property has been flooded in past which is not notified by the vendor, then a buyer may bring a claim for damages stemming from an misleading reply. A purchaser’s conveyancers should also commission an environmental report. This should indicate whether there is any known flood risk. If so, additional investigations will need to be made.

I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £195,000 and identified one close by in Llandaff North I like with amenity areas and station in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 49 years on the lease. There is not much else in Llandaff North for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a lease with such few years left?

Should you require a home loan that many years will be problematic. Discount the price by the expected lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for at least 2 years you could request that they start the process of the extension and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this matter.

The property lawyers undertaking our conveyancing in Llandaff North has forwarded papers to review that state the property is unregistered with epitome documents. Surely all property in Llandaff North are registered?

Almost all property in Llandaff North is registered. An 'epitome' is basically a dossier of photocopies of documents affecting an unregistered title. Plenty of Llandaff North conveyancing lawyers will be capable of dealing with this type of conveyancing but in the event that uncertainty prevails the conventional guidance presently is for the seller to undertake the registration formalities first and subsequently deal with the sale conveyance - this will have a domino effect to cause a prolonged transaction.