Unfortunately I am unable to travel far from West Kirby. What is the rationale as to why all West Kirby conveyancers are not on all mortgage company panels?

Pre- 2008 most lenders exhibited an approach to risk which is different than today. The FSA in 2010 conducted a thematic review into mortgage fraud which concluded: know the lawyers on your panel. As a result, lenders have subsequently looked to extract more data from law firms regarding their operations and the staff who work for them and set certain criteria such as completing a minimum number of transactions. Hundreds of law practices have found themselves removed from lender panels even though they had an exemplary disciplinary record, no complaints and no claims and didn't just 'dabble' in conveyancing. Such firms were never going to meet the minimum amount of transactions the mortgage companies insisted on.

Completed the sale of my flat in West Kirby last August yet the purchaser is SMS messaging daily to moan that his solicitor needs to hear from mine. What should my lawyer have done following completion?

After completion of your disposal your conveyancer should forward the transfer documentation and all of the paperwork to the purchaser's lawyers. Depending on the transaction, your solicitor should also confirm that the mortgage has been repaid to the buyers solicitors. There is unlikely to be post completion formalities just for conveyancing in West Kirby.

The estate agent has sent us the confirmation of our purchase of a new build apartment in West Kirby. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build legal work.

Here are examples of a few leasehold new build questions that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in West Kirby

Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? The Lease must contain a provision on behalf of the Vendor to pay the service charges in respect of unoccupied units in order to ensure that all services can be provided. The Vendor must covenant to keep unoccupied units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier? Please supply a car parking plan.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in West Kirby where we have witnessed a number of flat sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local West Kirby conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that 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 can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

Leasehold Conveyancing in West Kirby - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

Please inform me if there are any major works anticipated that will likely add a premium to the service charges? The answer will be useful as a) areas may cause problems for the building as the common areas may begin to deteriorate if maintenance are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have a dispute with the running of the building you will need to have all the details Is there a share of the freehold?

I am due to assess estimates for conveyancing in West Kirby from numerous conveyancer and decide on one. Am I right to instruct them to hold tight until I I have my bid accepted on a flat.

We would recommend that you only ask your property lawyer to commence work and submit searches after the offer has been accepted on the property particularly as West Kirby conveyancing searches are costly.