Having sold my house in Preston last January yet the purchaser is Skype messaging every few hours to say their conveyancer needs to hear from mysolicitor. What should my lawyer have done now that I have sold?

Following your house sale your solicitor should forward the transfer deeds and all supplemental paperwork to the buyer’s solicitors. Where appropriate, your solicitor should also send confirmation that the home loan has been redeemed to the purchasers conveyancers. There are no post completion procedures specific conveyancing in Preston.

We had appointed solicitors based in Preston on the RBS solicitor approved list. They have just billed me a separate sum for dealing with the RBS mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by RBS?

Provided it is contained in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your conveyancer is entitled to charge a fee for this. This fee is not set by RBS but by your Preston conveyancing practitioner. Numerous firms on the RBS panel will quote ’dealing with mortgage’ fee but some practices include it on their overall fee.

How can we know in advance if a Preston conveyancing solicitor on the UBS panel is any good?

When it comes to conveyancing in Preston getting recommendations is a sensible start. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one advertising the lowest fees. We would always recommend that you speak with the lawyer carrying out your transaction.

We are getting a further advance on our mortgage from Aldermore as we want to carry out alterations to our home in Preston. Do we need to select a local Preston solicitor on the Aldermore conveyancing panel to deal with the legals?

Aldermore do not ordinarily appoint firms on their conveyancing panel to handle the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Aldermore panel.

The deeds to my home are lost. The solicitors who conducted the conveyancing in Preston 4 years ago no longer exist. What are my options?

In today’s world there are copies made of almost everything, and your conveyancer will be aware precisely where to locate all the appropriate paperwork so you can buy or sell your house without any difficulty. Where duplicates can’t be found, your lawyer may be able to put in place insurance or indemnities against future claims on your property.

I am buying a new build apartment in Preston. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build conveyancing.

Set out below is a sample of a selection of leasehold new build questions that you should expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Preston

Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier? Where there is an Undertaking being granted there is the risk of forfeiture of the Headlease subject to relief if one or more of the Underlessees are willing to accept the original Head Lessee’s obligations as otherwise relief will be denied to the Underlessees. The only alternatives are the Head Lessor agreeing not to forfeit the Headlease or the Head Lessee guaranteeing to the Underlessees that it will not be in breach of the Headlease. Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision. The Vendor must covenant to keep unsold units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose?

I opted to have a survey done on a house in Preston before instructing solicitors. I have been told that there is a flying freehold aspect to the house. Our surveyor advised that some lenders may refuse to grant a mortgage on a flying freehold property.

It depends who your proposed lender is. Santander has different instructions from Halifax. Should you wish to telephone us we can check with the appropriate lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Preston. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Preston to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.