We are a couple about to sign contracts for a ground floor flat in Smethwick. We encountered a snag. The loan offer with Britannia runs out on 12/5/2025 but the vendors are insisting on a completion date of 14/5/2025. Is it possible to extend the mortgage offer?

The person best placed to deal with your concern is your conveyancer who will assess if he or she is should be discussing with the lender, owner’s solicitors, selling agents or possibly all parties based on the history of your transaction as of today.

It is is a decade since I purchased my house in Smethwick. Conveyancing lawyers have just been instructed on the sale but I can't find my title deeds. Will this jeopardise the sale?

You need not be too concerned. First the deeds may be retained by the lender or they could be in the possession of the conveyancers who oversaw the purchase. Secondly the likelihood is that the title will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you own the property by your conveyancing lawyers procuring up to date copy of the land registers. The vast majority of conveyancing in Smethwick relates to registered property but in the rare situation where your property is not registered it is more tricky but is not insurmountable.

Are there any apps to help identify a Smethwick solicitor on the Barclays conveyancing panel? I have a car and am willing to travel upto 20miles to meet the lawyer.

Feel free to make use of the search on this website. Please select a lender and your location and you will see a number of Smethwick conveyancing lawyers based on proximity. We have detailed some Smethwick conveyancing firms towards the end of this page and you can ring them to check whether they are on the Barclays approved list

My husband and I are first time buyers - had an offer accepted, yet the agent informed us that the owners will only go ahead if we instruct the agent's chosen solicitors as they are insisting on an ‘expedited deal’. Our preferred option is to instruct a high street conveyancer used to conveyancing in Smethwick

We suspect that the seller is unaware of this demand. Should the vendor require ‘a quick sale', alienating a motivated buyer is going to damage their objectives. Contact the owners directly and make sure they comprehend that (a)you are genuine purchasers (b)you are ready to progress, with finances arranged © you are unencumbered (d) you wish to move quickly (e)but you are going to use your preferred Smethwick conveyancing solicitors - as opposed tothose that will earn the negotiator at the agency a referral fee or meet his conveyancing targets demanded by corporate headquarters.

I have just started marketing my garden apartment in Smethwick. Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon, however I have recently received a yearly service charge demand – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is discharge the service charge as normal because all rents and service invoices will be apportioned on completion, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I own a studio flat in Smethwick, conveyancing formalities finalised August 2004. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Smethwick with an extended lease are worth £180,000. The ground rent is £65 invoiced annually. The lease expires on 21st October 2083

With only 58 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £22,800 and £26,400 as well as professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more comprehensive 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 clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.