I used Action Conveyancing several years past for my conveyancing in Worcestershire. Now, I need my files but the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?

Do call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Worcestershire of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously used, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £235,500 and identified one near me in Worcestershire I like with a park and station in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 52 years on the lease. There is not much else in Worcestershire suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a lease with such few years left?

Should you need a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will be a potential deal breaker. Discount the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for at least 2 years you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor regarding this.

As co-executor for the will of my grandfather I am disposing of a residence in Monmouth but I am based in Worcestershire. My conveyancer (who is 300 kilometers awayrequires that I sign a statutory declaration ahead of the transaction finalising. Can you recommend a conveyancing solicitor in Worcestershire who can attest and place their company stamp on the document?

strictly speaking you are unlikely to be required to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Normally or notary public or qualified solicitor will be fine regardless of whether they are located in Worcestershire

I have recently realised that I have Sixty One years remaining on my flat in Worcestershire. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you or your lawyers have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. In some cases an enquiry agent would be helpful to carry out a search and to produce an expert document which can be used as evidence that the landlord can not be located. It is advisable to get professional help from a property lawyer in relation to proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court overseeing Worcestershire.

I invested in buying a basement flat in Worcestershire, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Equivalent properties in Worcestershire with an extended lease are worth £201,000. The ground rent is £45 invoiced annually. The lease terminates on 21st October 2088

With only 64 years unexpired the likely cost is going to range between £15,200 and £17,600 plus legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. You should 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 clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

Midway through the sale of a leasehold flat in Worcestershire. Conveyancing lawyers are doing their job but we have been asked to pay an extortionate amount from the freeholder. So far we have paid £268 for a leasehold management information and then another £200 plus VAT for answers to questions raised by the purchaser's solicitor.

Your conveyancing practitioner will not have any control over the level of the bill for this information however the average fee for the information for Worcestershire leasehold property is £350. For Worcestershire conveyancing transactions it is conventional for the seller to cover the charges. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to address such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices out of proportion to the work involved. Regretfully there is no statute that mandates fixed charges for administrative tasks. Nor is there any set time limit by which they are duty bound to supply the information.