is it true that all Pevensey Bay solicitors on the TSB conveyancing panel are regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority?

As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the TSB conveyancing panel they would need to be regulated by the SRA. Many lenders do list licenced conveyancers on their panel and in such a situation the organisation would be overseen by the CLC.

I'm spending time viewing flats in Pevensey Bay and I am about to put in an offer. Should I already have a lawyer appointed at this stage? I will be getting a mortgage with UBS.

It would be sensible to start your search sooner rather than later. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their contact information on to the estate agent. Given that you are seeking a mortgage with UBS, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the UBS conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.

I have paid off my mortgage with Kent Reliance. I assume I don't need a Pevensey Bay solicitor on the Kent Reliance panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.

If you have finished paying off your Kent Reliance mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Kent Reliance mortgage from the register. Kent Reliance, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:

1. but are not moving to another property
2. where Kent Reliance has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
3. Kent Reliance has instructed the Land Registry to do so

Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold element on a property I put an offer in a fortnight ago in what should have been a simple, no chain conveyancing. Pevensey Bay is the location of the property. What do you suggest?

Flying freeholds in Pevensey Bay are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Pevensey Bay you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds very carefully. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Pevensey Bay may ascertain that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.

Am I right to be wary that brokers that I am dealing with are encouraging me to use a factory type conveyancing firm as opposed to a local Pevensey Bay conveyancing firm?

As is the case with lots of service providers, often referrals from connections can be worth their weight in gold. But there are many players in a conveyancing matter; estate agents, mortgage brokers and lenders might all recommend solicitors to retain. On occasion the solicitors might be known to one of the organisations as one of the best in their field, but occasionally there behind the scenes financial incentive behind the recommendation. You have the right to choose your preferred lawyer. You need to be aware that some lenders specify a panel list of conveyancers you are obliged to use for the lender related work in your home move.

I work for a busy estate agent office in Pevensey Bay where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Pevensey Bay conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

I bought a split level flat in Pevensey Bay, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Comparable flats in Pevensey Bay with an extended lease are worth £211,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease ceases on 21st October 2092

With only 68 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.

Midway through the sale of a leasehold flat in Pevensey Bay. Conveyancing lawyers are doing their job but we are being charged an extortionate amount from the freeholder. To date we have paid £237 for a leasehold management pack and then a further £118 for additional questions supplied by the buyers conveyancer.

You will not have control over the extent of the bill for this information but the average costs for the information for Pevensey Bay leasehold premises is £380. For Pevensey Bay conveyancing deals it is standard for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no statutory obligation to address such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices disproportionate to the work involved. Regretfully there is no legislation that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Nor is there any statutory time frame by which they are duty bound to issue answers.