It is is a decade since I acquired my house in Keston. Conveyancing lawyers have recently been instructed on the sale but I am unable to track down my title deeds. Is this a major issue?

Don’t worry too much. Firstly there is a chance that the deeds will be with the lender or they could be archived with the lawyers who oversaw your purchase. Secondly in most cases the land will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to prove you are the registered owner by your conveyancing solicitors obtaining current official copies of the land registers. Almost all conveyancing in Keston relates to registered property but in the unlikely event that your home is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is resolvable.

I'm purchasing a new build house in Keston benefiting from help to buy. The developers would not reduce the amount so I negotiated 6k of additionals instead. The house builders rep advised me not reveal to my lawyer about this deal as it will affect my loan with Alliance & Leicester . 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.

I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £195,000 and identified one round the corner in Keston I like with a park and railway links in the vicinity, however it only has 61 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Keston suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a short lease?

If you require a mortgage that many years will likely 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 existing proprietor has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you may ask them to start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor about this.

I am using a search engine for the phrase on line conveyancing in Keston it reveals numerous property lawyerslocally. With so much choice what is the best way to find the right conveyancing solicitor for my move?

The best way of finding the right conveyancer is through a trusted recommendation, so ask colleagues and family who have acquired a property in Keston or a reputable estate agent or mortgage broker. Charges for conveyancing in Keston differ, so it's sensible to obtain at least three fee estimates from varying types of solicitors. Make sure that you know that the fees are fixed.

All being well we will complete the disposal of our £175,000 maisonette in Keston in 5 days. The management company has quoted £312 for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Keston?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Keston conveyancing will involve, queries regarding the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

Answering pre-exchange enquiries Where consent is required before sale in Keston Supplying insurance information Deeds of covenant upon sale Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Keston leasehold property is £350. For Keston conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to provide the information.

I am the registered owner of a a ground floor purpose built flat in Keston. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the premium payable for a lease extension?

Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a Keston conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Keston flat is 1 Southlands Court Southlands Road in September 2013. The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal determined that the premium to be paid by the tenant on the grant of a new lease, in accordance with section 56 and Schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 was £30,541 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 50.57 years.