I am purchasing a garden flat in Barking. Conveyancing solicitors are said to be ‘a necessary evil’ but can I do it myself?

Leaving aside the complexities and merits of DIY conveyancing in Barking you will have to appoint a solicitor on your mortgage company's conveyancing panel to look after their interests. Most people therefore find it easier to let the solicitor act for them and the lender. Furthermore there is minimal cost savings to be made in you doing conveyancing for yourself and another lawyer conducting the conveyancing for the lender. Please feel free to use the search tool to find a lawyer on your lender panel in Barking.

Will our conveyancer be asking questions about flooding as part of the conveyancing in Barking.

The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for solicitors specialising in conveyancing in Barking. Plenty of people will acquire a house in Barking, completely aware that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, aside from the physical destruction, if a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, satisfactory insurance cover, or sell the property. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the buyer.

Conveyancers are not qualified to give advice on flood risk, however there are a number of searches that may be undertaken by the buyer or by their conveyancers which will give them a better understanding of the risks in Barking. The conventional set of property information forms given to a buyer’s solicitor (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) contains a standard inquiry of the vendor to determine whether the premises has historically flooded. If the premises has been flooded in past which is not revealed by the vendor, then a purchaser could commence a compensation claim resulting from an misleading reply. The buyer’s lawyers may also conduct an environmental report. This should higlight whether there is a recorded flood risk. If so, more detailed investigations will need to be carried out.

The estate agent has sent us the confirmation of our purchase of a new build apartment in Barking. 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.

Set out below is a sample of a selection of leasehold new build questions that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Barking

If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? The Landlord must covenant to assume the management if the Management Company goes into liquidation or otherwise defaults in running the management scheme. Investor purchasers must be able to freely grant unsecured tenancies at market rents without requiring any consents. 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.

Over the last few months I have been searching for a ground for flat up to £235,500 and found one close by in Barking I like with a park and transport links nearby, the downside is that it's only got 52 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Barking suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?

If you require a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will be a potential deal breaker. Discount the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current owner has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this matter.

I've found a house that seems to meet my requirements, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have since discovered that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns purchasing a leasehold house in Barking. Conveyancing lawyers have are about to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Barking are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Barking in which case you should be looking for a Barking conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer should appraise you on the various issues.

Following months of correspondence we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Barking. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

if there is a absentee freeholder or where there is disagreement about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to determine the premium.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Barking residence is 240 Strone Road in January 2014. the tribunal held that the price to be paid for the freehold interest was£23,538 of which£13,017 is attributable to the ground floor flat and £10,521 to the
first floor flat. This case related to 2 flats. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 65.5 years.