The Sleaford conveyancing solicitors that I appointed last week on my purchase in Sleaford have without warning closed. They were on acting for me because I had to have a firm on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel and my preferred Sleaford lawyer was not. I gave my credit card details for them to take £195 for searches. What should be my next steps?

If you have an estate agent involved then inform them straight away so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to the problems encountered. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers may be able to help.

I know that there are debates on Chancel Insurance on online forums. Do I require this when acquiring a house in Sleaford? or Apparently there is a law dating back centuries that means some homeowners living in a parish church boundary may be liable to pay for maintenance to the chancel within the church. Is this applicable for conveyancing in Sleaford?

Unless a prior purchase of the house took place post 12 October 2013 you can expect solicitors delivering conveyancing in Sleaford to continue to suggest a chancel search and or insurance against a claim.

Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to our house can not be found. The solicitors who handled the conveyancing in Sleaford 4 years ago are no longer around. Will I be able to sell the house?

Gone are the days when you need to have the physical original deeds to evidence that you are the registered proprietor of land or property, as the Land Registry hold details of all registered land or property electronically.

Is it best to go with a Sleaford conveyancing lawyer who is local to the property I am purchasing? An old friend can perform the legal formalities but they are based 400kilometers away.

The primary upside of using a high street Sleaford conveyancing firm is that you can pop in to sign paperwork, present your ID and pester them if necessary. Having local Sleaford know how is a bonus. However nothing is more important than finding someone that will do a good and efficient job. If you know people who used your friend and they were impressed that should surpass using an unfamiliar Sleaford conveyancing lawyer just because they are local.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have since found out that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a leasehold house in Sleaford. Conveyancing advisers have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Sleaford are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area who can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Sleaford in which case you should be looking for a Sleaford conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.

I invested in buying a leasehold flat in Sleaford, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Corresponding flats in Sleaford with an extended lease are worth £216,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2093

With 69 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.