Our god-son is purchasing a newly built flat in St Anns with a mortgage from Co-operative. His conveyancer has said that there is a delay in completing the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. This document is news to me - what is it and who needs sight of it?

The form is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the purchase. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Co-operative conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the valuer when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Co-operative conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.

I have been told that property searches are the main reason for obstruction in St Anns house deals. Is there any truth in this?

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) released determinations of research by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature within the top 10 causes of delays in the conveyancing process. Local searches are unlikely to feature in any holding up conveyancing in St Anns.

How does conveyancing in St Anns differ for new build properties?

Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in St Anns come to us having been asked by the housebuilder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is ready to move into. This is because house builders in St Anns usually acquire the real estate, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in St Anns or who has acted in the same development.

I am using a search engine for the phrase on line conveyancing in St Anns it shows results of many conveyancersin the area. How do I determine which is the right conveyancing solicitor for the sale of my house?

The best way of finding a suitable conveyancer is via personal testimonial, so seek the guidance of colleagues and family who have bought a property in St Anns or a local estate agent or mortgage broker. Costs for conveyancing in St Anns differ, so it's a good idea to secure a minimum of four estimates from varying types of solicitors. Dont forget to clarify what costs in the quote includes.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £200,000 garden flat in St Anns on Monday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £372 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in St Anns?

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

Answering pre-contract enquiries Where consent is required before sale in St Anns 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 solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for St Anns leasehold premises is £350. For St Anns 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 obliged to supply answers.

St Anns Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

It would be a good idea to find out if there are any onerous restrictions in the lease. By way of example some leases prohibit pets being permitted in certain buildings in St Anns. If you love the flatin St Anns however your cat can’t live with you then you will be faced hard compromise. You should want to find out as much as possible concerning the company managing the block as they will impact your use and enjoyment of the property. As the proprietor of a leasehold property you are often in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to daily issues like the tidiness of the common parts. Ask other tenants if they are happy with their service. On a final note, find out the dates that the maintenance fees are due to the relevant party and specifically what it includes. Many St Anns leasehold apartments will incur a service charge for maintenance of the building set on behalf of the freeholder. Should you acquire the property you will have to meet this liability, normally periodically during the year. This could be anything from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built blocks. There will also be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a significant sum, say about £25-£75 but you need to check as occasionally it can be many hundreds of pounds.