I am one month into the sale of my house in Burnham On Crouch and the EA has just called to advise that the purchasers are swapping law firm. I am told that this is due to the fact that the lender will only engage with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a leading lender only engage with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to choose to handle their conveyancing in Burnham On Crouch ?

UK lenders have always had panels of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the last few years big names such as Lloyds Banking Group, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for decades.

Lending institutions blame a rise in fraud as the reason for the cull – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. Banks tend not to reveal how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your purchasers are not going to have any impact on this.

My friend advised me that if I am buying in Burnham On Crouch I should ask my conveyancer to execute a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?

A search of this type is usually included in the estimate for your Burnham On Crouch conveyancing searches. It is not a small report of more than thirty pages, listing and setting out significant information about Burnham On Crouch around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Burnham On Crouch Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime statistics, Local Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data regarding Burnham On Crouch.

How do I use your search app to find a conveyancing solicitor in Burnham On Crouch on the authorised to act for my mortgage?

First select a mortgage company such as Accord Mortgages Ltd, Chelsea Building Society or Britannia then specify your location e.g. Burnham On Crouch. Conveyancing practices in Burnham On Crouch and further afield will then be identified.

I am employed by a long established estate agency in Burnham On Crouch where we have experienced a number of flat sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Burnham On Crouch conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

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 buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with 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 purchaser.

Burnham On Crouch Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries before Purchasing

It would be sensible to discover as much as possible regarding the company managing the building as they can either make your living at the property much simpler or problematic. Being a leasehold owner you are often at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to every day matters such as the tidiness of the common parts. Ask other people whether they are happy with them. In conclusion, find out the dates that you are obliged pay the maintenance charge to the relevant party and specifically what you get for your money. It would be sensible to investigate if the the lease contains any onerous restrictions in the lease. For example it is fairly common in Burnham On Crouch leases that pets are not permitted in in a block in Burnham On Crouch. If you like the apartmentin Burnham On Crouch but your dog can’t move with you then you have a very hard determination. This question is useful as a) areas can cause problems for the building as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate if repairs remain unpaid b) if the leasehold owners have a dispute with the managing agents you will wish to have complete disclosure

I see that you have a post code search directory listing firms on the mortgage company conveyancing panel. Do Burnham On Crouch conveyancing firms pay you a referral fee if I instruct them for my conveyancing?

We are a listing service only for law firms wishing to communicate if they are on the lender conveyancing panel or other lender panels. We do not charge referral fees to the any conveyancer that you subsequently appoint for your conveyancing in Burnham On Crouch.