We are purchasing a house in West Hill. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a lawyer? At some point we will need to send our life savings into their account. What protection do we have from them run away with our money?

Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.

When it comes to mortgage companies such as Coventry BS, do West Hill lawyers have to pay a yearly amount to be on the list of approved solicitors?

We are unaware of any lender fees to register on their panel, although some do levy an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.

I am buying a property in West Hill. An unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Bank of Ireland have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?

As your lender is Bank of Ireland your lawyer must comply with the formal instructions outlined in Section 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Bank of Ireland. The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook stipulates minimum requirements for solar panel roof-space leases, and solicitors are required to report to Bank of Ireland where a lease does not meet these requirements. The conditions relate to the installation of panels on properties in England and Wales and is not limited to West Hill.

I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £195,000 and identified one near me in West Hill I like with amenity areas and transport links nearby, the downside is that it only has 52 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in West Hill in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a short lease?

Should you require a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will be an issue. Reduce the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you may ask them to start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor about this.

Taking into account that I will soon part with hundreds of thousands of pounds on a two bedroom apartment in West Hill I wish to have a conversation with the conveyancer about myconveyancing before instructing the firm. Can this be arranged?

This is something that we recommend - we would be delighted to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you liaising with the solicitor due to be doing your conveyancing in West Hill.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is unique individual, not a case number. The practices that we put you in touch with believe that the fees you are provided with for residential conveyancing in West Hill should be the amount on the final invoice that you are charged.

We expect to complete our sale of a £125,000 garden flat in West Hill on Friday in a week. The management company has quoted £420 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in West Hill?

West Hill conveyancing on leasehold flats typically results in administration charges invoiced by freeholders :

Addressing conveyancing due diligence enquiries Where consent is required before sale in West Hill 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 conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for West Hill leasehold property is £350. For West Hill 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 provide answers.

Following years of correspondence we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in West Hill. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a West Hill conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a West Hill premises is 158 West Hill in November 2010. the Tribunal held that the premium to be paid for the freehold reversion should be £99,650 This case was in relation to 7 flats. The unexpired term as at the valuation date was 75.88 years.

I am buying a house and need a conveyancing solicitor in West Hill who is on the mortgage company approved panel. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a firm?

Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for the mortgage company who carry out conveyancing in West Hill. We dont recommend any particular conveyancing practice.