I am considering applying for a UBS mortgage for purchase of a newly converted (under development) in Stretford with 70% LTV. Is it compulsory to choose a solicitor on the conveyancing panel for UBS ?

There is nothing to stop you using your solicitor, but UBS will insist on their interests being represented by a firm on their conveyancing panel. There is greater potential for delays and confusion with two solicitors involved, and it will undoubtedly be more expensive too.

I decided to have a survey completed on a house in Stretford before appointing conveyancers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. Our surveyor has said that some lenders will refuse to issue a loan on a flying freehold home.

It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different instructions from Nationwide. If you e-mail us we can check via the relevant mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Stretford. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Stretford to see if the conveyancing costs will increase in light of this.

How simple is it to swap solicitor as I have to retain one who is on the TSB conveyancing list. I hired a family conveyancing solicitor in Stretford round the corner but she is not approved by TSB

It would be our pleasure to help you select a conveyancing solicitor in Stretford on the TSB panel. Please note that the conveyancers that we list do not pay us a referral fee if you instruct them and are authorised and regulated by the SRA who regulate all conveyancing solicitors in Stretford. Using search facility on this page, you can compare costs for conveyancing solicitors in Stretford and throughout England and Wales.

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in Stretford where we see a few flat sales jeopardised as a result of short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Stretford conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

Stretford Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

Most Stretford leasehold apartments will have a service charge for the upkeep of the block invoiced on behalf of the freeholder. Where you acquire the property you will have to pay this charge, usually in instalments throughout the year. This may differ from a couple of hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for buildings with lifts and large common areas. In all likelihood there will be a ground rent to be met annual, ordinarily this is not a significant sum, say around £50-£100 but you need to enquire as on occasion it can be many hundreds of pounds. Please note if it is less than 80 years it will affect the value of the apartment. It is worth checking with your lender that they are willing to go ahead with the loan given the lease term. A short lease means that you will most likely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering what this would cost. For most Stretfordlease extensions you would need to own the premises for two years in order to be entitled to extend the lease. What is the length of the lease?

We have just become aware that one of the directors of the solicitors acting on the purchase conveyancing in Stretford is an uncle of the seller. Is this acceptable?

As long as there is no conflict of interest this is permitted. If you are needing mortgage finance then the bank may have a say as many banks have specific instructions on this. For example for Skipton Building Society as of 13/12/2024, the requirements read as follows :