My partner and I are looking to acquire a property in Minehead and are in fact using a Minehead conveyancing firm. Within the past 48 hours our solicitor has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with the expectation that exchange is imminent. The Mortgage Works have this morning contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Minehead conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Is this a problem?

If you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Minehead solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.

I am assisting my niece sell her property in Minehead. Will the solicitor arrange an energy assessment or should I organise this?

After the abolition of HIPs, EPC’s was retained a required part of selling a house. An energy performance certificate needs to be commissioned in advance of the property being placed on the market. This is not something that solicitors normally organise. Where you are instructing a Minehead conveyancing lawyer they may be able to arrange energy performance certificates due to their relationships with long established local accredited person

When it comes to mortgage companies such as Bank of Ireland, do Minehead lawyers have to pay a yearly amount to be on the list of approved solicitors?

We are not aware of any lender fees to be on their panel, although some do charge an administration fee to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.

I am buying a property in Minehead. One unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. UBS have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?

As you are obtaining a mortgage with UBS your lawyer must follow the formal instructions set out in Section 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for UBS. The CML Handbook sets out minimum specifications for solar panel roof-space leases, and solicitors are required to report to UBS where a lease does not satisfy these specifications. The specifications relate to the installation of panels on properties countrywide and is not limited to Minehead.

Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £195,000 and identified one round the corner in Minehead I like with open areas and transport links nearby, however it only has 51 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Minehead in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?

If you require a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you can ask them to start the process of the extension 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 about this matter.

As co-executor for the will of my uncle I am selling a property in Cardiff but reside in Minehead. My solicitor (who is 300 miles from mehas requested that I execute a statutory declaration before the transaction finalising. Could you suggest a conveyancing practitioner in Minehead to attest this legal document for me?

Technically speaking you should not be required to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily or notary public or qualified solicitor will suffice regardless of whether they are located in Minehead

Expecting to complete next month on a leasehold property in Minehead. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they are sending me a report tomorrow. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Minehead should include some of the following:

Advice concerning the obligations in the lease to pay service charges - in respect of the block, and the wider rights a lessee has Are pets allowed in the flat? You should know whether the lease allows you to change or improve aspects of the premises- you must be made aware as to whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required specifics of the parties to the lease, e.g. these could be the leaseholder, head lessor, freeholder Changes to the premises

Minehead Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Be sure to find out if there are any onerous prohibitions in the lease. For example some leases prohibit pets being permitted in in a block in Minehead. If you love the flatin Minehead but your cat can’t make the move with you then you will be presented with a difficult compromise. Who takes charge for maintaining and repairing the block? The answer will be helpful as a) areas can cause problems in the building as the common areas may start to deteriorate where services remain unpaid b) if the leasehold owners have an issue with the running of the building you will need to have all the details