We were just about to exchange contracts for a garden flat in Plumstead. We encountered a problem. The mortgage offer with Yorkshire Building Society expires on 1/4/2025 but the vendors are putting forward a completion date of 3/4/2025. Can one extend the mortgage expiry date?

The best person to deal with your question is your conveyancer who will assess if he or she is should be discussing with the mortgage company, owner’s lawyers, selling agents or indeed all three given the history of your conveyancing to date.

Will our conveyancer be raising enquiries about flooding during the conveyancing in Plumstead.

The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for conveyancers specialising in conveyancing in Plumstead. Some people will acquire a house in Plumstead, fully aware that at some time, it may be flooded. However, aside from the physical destruction, if a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, satisfactory insurance cover, or sell the property. Steps can be carried out as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the buyer.

Conveyancers are not best placed to offer advice on flood risk, however there are a numerous checks that can be initiated by the purchaser or on a buyer’s behalf which will figure out the risks in Plumstead. The standard property information forms supplied to a purchaser’s conveyancer (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) contains a usual question of the vendor to discover whether the property has suffered from flooding. If flooding has previously occurred and is not disclosed by the owner, then a purchaser could issue a claim for damages stemming from an incorrect reply. The purchaser’s solicitors should also commission an environmental report. This will reveal if there is any known flood risk. If so, additional investigations will need to be carried out.

As co-executor for the will of my father I am disposing of a residence in Monmouth but live in Plumstead. My lawyer (approximately 260 kilometers from meneeds me to sign a statutory declaration prior to completion. Can you recommend a conveyancing lawyer in Plumstead to witness this legal document for me?

Technically speaking you should not need to have the documents witnessed by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily any notary public or solicitor will be fine regardless of whether they are Plumstead based

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the disposal of our £150,000 flat in Plumstead in just under a week. The landlords agents has quoted £396 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Plumstead?

For most leasehold sales in Plumstead conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

Completing pre-exchange enquiries Where consent is required before sale in Plumstead Copies of the building insurance and schedule Deeds of covenant upon sale Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Plumstead leasehold premises is £350. For Plumstead conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to provide answers.

I have given up seeking a lease extension in Plumstead. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

if there is a missing landlord or where there is disagreement about what the lease extension should cost, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the LVT to arrive at the price.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Plumstead property is 103a Footscray Road in January 2014. The tribunal determines that the premium payable for the extended lease should be £34,500 according to the expert witness valuation calculation This case affected 1 flat.

What is the reason for my conveyancing practitioner requiring various items of identification ahead of starting selling or purchasing a property in Plumstead?

Plumstead solicitors are required by the Law Society, SRA, the Land Registry and current Money Laundering Regulations to certify that the have verified the identity of their clients. It will also be a condition of your mortgage offer. In addition they have to complete various forms, particularly those relating to SDLT and need to have details such as your full names, NI number and date of birth.