It is is a decade since I acquired my house in Wick. Conveyancing lawyers have just been instructed on the sale but I can't track down my title deeds. Will this cause complications?

Don’t worry too much. Firstly there is a possibility that the deeds will be kept by your mortgage company or they may be in the possession of the lawyers who acted in your purchase. Secondly the likelihood is that the land will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you are the registered owner by your conveyancing solicitors obtaining current official copies of the land registers. Nearly all conveyancing in Wick relates to registered property but in the unlikely event that your home is not registered it is more of a problem but is resolvable.

My partner and I have organised a further advance on our home loan from Coventry BS as we want to carry out improvements to our property in Wick. Do we need to appoint a high street Wick solicitor on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel to deal with the paperwork?

Coventry BS would not normally instruct firms on their conveyancing panel to deal with the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Coventry BS list.

I have paid off my mortgage with Leeds Building Society. I assume I don't need a Wick conveyancer on the Leeds Building Society panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?

If you have finished paying off your Leeds Building Society mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Leeds Building Society mortgage from the register. Leeds Building Society, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:

1. but are not moving to another property
2. where Leeds Building Society has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
3. Leeds Building Society has instructed the Land Registry to do so

After shopping around on the internet I have found a Wick property lawyer having made sure that they are on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?

Coventry BS will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Coventry BS will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Wick surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.

I decided to have a survey completed on a house in Wick ahead of appointing conveyancers. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold element to the property. Our surveyor advised that some lenders tend refuse to grant a mortgage on this type of property.

It varies from the lender to lender. Lloyds has different instructions from Birmingham Midshires. If you call us we can investigate further via the relevant bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Wick. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Wick especially if they are accustomed to such properties in Wick.

What are your top tips when it comes to appointing a Wick conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Wick conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you speak with several firms including non Wick conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions might be of use:

How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation? What are the costs for lease extension work?

Wick Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

It would be prudent to find out as much as possible about the company managing the building as they will affect your use and enjoyment of the property. As the owner of a leasehold property you are frequently at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to daily issues like the cleanliness of the common parts. Enquire of other people whether they are happy with their management. Finally, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the relevant party and specifically what it includes. How much is the annual maintenance fee and ground rent?

What can I do where I am unhappy with the lawyer who did my conveyancing in Wick?

Occasionally the level of service you receive is not as you expect, and is is a fact of life that occasionally things do go wrong. However there is recourse if you were not happy with your conveyancing in Wick. This varies from trying to resolve matters directly with them, through to reporting a conveyancer to their governing body. If you remain aggrieved you may consider getting in touch with the Legal Ombudsman.