The Truro conveyancing solicitors that just started acting on my house acquisition in Truro have suddenly closed. I chose them because I had to have a lawyer on the Aldermore conveyancing panel and my previous Truro lawyer was not. I paid them 275 plus VAT in advance. What are my options?

If you have an estate agent involved then let them know immediately so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to the problems encountered. Most sellers would be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Aldermore 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 should be in a position to assist.

My uncle informed me that in buying a property in Truro there could be various restrictions prohibiting external alterations to a property. Is this right?

We are aware of anumerous of properties in Truro which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to execute external changes. Part of the conveyancing in Truro should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.

My wife and I buying a detached bungalow in Truro. The intention is to convert the garage to an office at the house.Will the conveyancing process include investigations to see if these works are allowed?

Your property lawyer should review the registered title as conveyancing in Truro can on occasion reveal restrictions in the title deeds which prevent categories of works or require the consent of another owner. Certain works need local authority planning consent and approval in accordance building regulations. Certain areas are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which frequently prevent or impact extensions. You should check these things with a surveyor prior to committing yourself to a purchase.

I currently have a mortgage with HSBC for my property in Truro. Conveyancing was finalised months ago. In the event that I decide to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform HSBC?

Your original mortgage agreement with HSBC will provide that you need their approval prior to renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of HSBC’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact HSBC directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a HSBC conveyancing panel solicitor.

I own a 4 bedroom Edwardian property in Truro. Conveyancing solicitor acted for me and Alliance & Leicester . I did a free Land Registry search last week and there are a couple of entries: the first freehold, another for leasehold with the exact same property. Is it worth asking Alliance & Leicester to clarify?

You need to read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Truro and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they buy they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with purchasers. You can also check the position with your conveyancing lawyer who completed the work.

We're first time buyers - agreed a price, but the property agent advised that the owners will only move forward if we appoint their preferred lawyers as they need an ‘expedited deal’. Our preferred option is to instruct a high street conveyancer accustomed to conveyancing in Truro

It is improbable the vendors are behind this. Should the seller desire ‘a quick sale', turning down a genuine buyer is counter productive. Try to communicate with the vendors directly and explain that (a)you are motivated purchasers (b)you are excited to move forward, with mortgage lined up © you are chain free (d) you wish to move quickly (e)however you are going to use your preferred Truro conveyancing solicitors - rather thanthose that will provide their estate agent a kickback or hit his conveyancing targets demanded by senior management.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Truro from the perspective of saving time on the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Truro can be bypassed if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information which will be required by the buyers’ lawyers.
You believe that you know the number of years left on your lease but you should double-check via your conveyancers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is under 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an as soon as possible that you identify whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your home on the market for sale. If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s permission? In particular have you laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Truro state that internal structural changes or addition of wooden flooring necessitate a licence from the Landlord acquiescing to such alterations. If you dont have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer first. A minority of Truro leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.

I purchased a garden flat in Truro, conveyancing having been completed June 2000. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Comparable properties in Truro with over 90 years remaining are worth £227,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease terminates on 21st October 2097

You have 72 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 plus professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.