I am buying a property without a mortgage in Caterham. I have resided for the previous twelve years in Caterham. Conveyancing searches are exorbitant. As I know the area and road intimately should I not bother getting the solicitor to do all the conveyancing searches?

If you not getting a home loan, then all but one or two of the Caterham conveyancing searches are optional. Your lawyer will 'advise', perhaps strongly, that you should have searches done, but he has a professional duty to take that path of advice. Do take into account; if you are going to sell the house one day, it could be of relevance to your prospective buyer what the searches determine. On occasion premises with functional issues can still reveal detrimental search results. A good conveyancing solicitor in Caterham will be able to give you some practical advice concerning this.

I used Arc property Solicitors a few years ago for my conveyancing in Caterham. I now require my papers but the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?

You should contact 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 Caterham of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously retained, 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 £305k and found one round the corner in Caterham I like with open areas and station nearby, however it's only got 51 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Caterham in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a short lease?

If you need a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term may be an issue. Discount the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you could request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer about this.

I need to instruct a conveyancing solicitor for freehold conveyancing in Caterham. I have discover a web site which looks to be the ideal offering If there is a chance to get all this stuff done via email that would be preferable. Do I need to be concerned? What should out be looking out for?

As usual with these online conveyancers you need to read ALL the small print - did you notice the extra charge for dealing with the mortgage?

I acquired a basement flat in Caterham, conveyancing was carried out in 1995. How much will my lease extension cost? Comparable properties in Caterham with an extended lease are worth £165,000. The ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease ceases on 21st October 50

With only 50 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £36,100 and £41,800 plus costs.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.