I am in the throes of transferring my current homeowner mortgage to a Buy to Let National Westminster Bank mortgage. I have been informed by my broker that I need a lawyer for this. I spoke to my previous Goodwick conveyancing solicitor who acted on my behalf when I previously bought the property. The costs illustration e-mailed to me of £550 has surprised me as its a remortgage than a sale or purchase.

The estimate does seem a little on the high side. Where you are content to invest time contrasting charges you may be able to get the conveyancing a bit cheaper by perhaps £125. On the other hand, assuming were happy with the conveyancing the firm gave you maycome to regret choosing an an unknown solicitor. If is important to ensure the firm can act for National Westminster Bank. Do utilise our search tool to get a quote a Goodwick conveyancing firm on the National Westminster Bank approved list of lawyers, which can often include conveyancing solicitors in Goodwick.

I have been told that property searches are the number one reason for hinderance in Goodwick house deals. Is that correct?

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) has noted the findings of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature amongst the most frequent causes of hindrances in the conveyancing process. Local searches are unlikely to be the root cause of holding up conveyancing in Goodwick.

I am buying my first flat in Goodwick benefiting from help to buy. The sellers refused to move on the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of additionals instead. The house builders rep told me not inform my conveyancer about this side-deal as it may impact my loan with the bank. Should I keep quiet?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

Last July I purchased a leasehold house in Goodwick. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I bought a basement flat in Goodwick, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Equivalent flats in Goodwick with a long lease are worth £191,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 invoiced annually. The lease ends on 21st October 2078

With only 53 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £27,600 and £31,800 plus professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.

Do I cancel the direct debit for my mortgage with Santander as soon as a completion date for my home sale in Goodwick has been set?

You are best advised to maintain meeting any mortgage payments to Santander pending the mortgage being repaid from the proceeds of sale as part of your Goodwick conveyancing.