I chose a high street solicitor for my conveyancing in Tunstall recently. After carefully reading the Terms I notewe are liable for fees even where the conveyance does not complete. Should I go with them or appoint a web based firm offering no-sale-no-fee conveyancing in Tunstall?

Generally there is a compromise along the lines that if "No Sale No Fee" is offered then the fee levels will tend to be be uplifted to counteract those conveyances that do not go ahead. Please beware that these offerings tend not to cover outlay such as Tunstall conveyancing search expenses.

I purchased a terraced Georgian house in Tunstall. Conveyancing solicitor acted for me and Skipton Building Society. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw a couple of entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold with the exact same address. I'd like to know for sure, how can I find out??

You should read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Tunstall and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage 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 carried out the work.

Over the last few months I have been searching for a flat up to £235,500 and identified one round the corner in Tunstall I like with a park and railway links nearby, however it only has 51 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Tunstall for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a short lease?

If you need a mortgage the shortness of the lease may be problematic. Discount the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for at least 2 years you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor concerning this matter.

I need to instruct a conveyancing solicitor for remortgage conveyancing in Tunstall. I've stumble upon a web site which looks to be the perfect offering If it is possible to get all formalities done via email that would be preferable. Should I be wary? What should out be looking out for?

As usual with these online conveyancers you need to read ALL the small print - did you notice the extra charge for dealing with the mortgage?

We own a leasehold flat in Tunstall. Conveyancing was finished in 2011. I have been told that I mustn’t let the the remaining lease term to get too low. What is the reasoning?

Tunstall leasehold properties are for a fixed term - often just under one hundred years when they started. However a significant appartments in Tunstall were constructed or converted in the 60’s and so such leases now have under 80 years left to run. That may seem like plenty of time but Banks, Building Societies and other mortgage companies tend to require leases to have a minimum of 75 years remaining to be mortgageable. Accordingly when you come to sell the property you will need a lease extension if you are nearing 75 years. To maximise the marketability of your property you should be considering whether to extend your lease well in advance of selling the property. Please note that there are significant benefits to taking action before the lease hits eighty years as when the lease falls below eighty years the premium to be paid to extend starts to escalate.