My solicitor has discovered a defect with the lease for the flat we are buying in Okehampton. The other side have suggested defective title insurance as a solution. We are content with insurance and will pay for it. Our property lawyer has advised that he must be satisfied that the bank is willing to move forward with this solution. Are we the client or is the mortgage company ?

Regardless of the fact that you have a mortgage offer from the bank does not mean to say that the property will meet their requirements for the purposes of a mortgage. Your lawyer has to ensure that the lease has to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook provisions. You and the bank are the client. These conveyancing instructions have to be complied with.

We previously appointed conveyancing lawyers with offices in Okehampton on the TSB solicitor approved list. They have just billed me an additional amount for dealing with the TSB mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by TSB?

Unfortunately, as long as it is in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your property lawyer can levy a fee for this. This charge is not set by TSB but by your Okehampton property lawyer. Some firms on the TSB panel will levy an ‘acting for lender’ fee and others do not.

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

As your lender is Yorkshire BS your lawyer must follow the formal requirements contained in Section 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Yorkshire BS. The CML Handbook contains minimum conditions for solar panel roof-space leases, and conveyancers are required to report to Yorkshire BS where a lease fails to comply with these provisions. The requirements relate to the installation of panels on properties countrywide and is not restricted to Okehampton.

I have instructed a Okehampton conveyancing practitioner having made sure that they are on the Santander conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?

Santander will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Santander will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. Your conveyancing practitioner will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by your Okehampton postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Santander, you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Okehampton.

Just had an offer accepted on a new build flat in Okehampton. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build conveyancing.

Set out below are examples of a selection of leasehold new build enquiries that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Okehampton

There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants. Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier? Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision. The Landlord must covenant to assume the management if the Management Company goes into liquidation or otherwise defaults in running the management scheme. Please confirm the Lease plans are architect prepared.

Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £235,500 and identified one close by in Okehampton I like with amenity areas and railway links nearby, the downside is that it's only got 49 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Okehampton in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a lease with such few years left?

If you need a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will be an issue. Reduce the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for at least 2 years you could ask them to start the process of the extension and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor concerning this matter.

In what way does the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 affect my commercial property in Okehampton and how can you help?

The 1954 Act affords a safeguard to business leaseholders, giving them the right to make a request to court for a continuation of occupancy when the lease reaches an end. There are certain specified grounds that a landlord can refuse a lease renewal and the rules are involved. Fees are different for commercial conveyancing. Okehampton is one of our hundreds of areas of the UK in which the firms we work with are based