I require conveyancing for an apartment in a fairly new development (6 years built) in Lees. The vast majority the appartments are already sold. Is it strictly necessary to order local searches as part of conveyancing in Lees?

If you are acquiring a property with the assistance of a loan, your mortgage company will need some (many) of the searches so you'll have no choice. If not, then Lees conveyancing searches are optional. Your solicitor, will ’encourage’, perhaps strongly, that you should not go ahead without searches, but he or she has a professional duty to do this. One thing to bear in mind; if you are likely to sell the house one day, it may be of interest to your future buyer what the searches contain. Sometimes houses with no practical issues can still throw up adverse search results. But if you insist that your lawyer to proceed without searches then your lawyer will have to follow your instructions or it may be necessary to find a new lawyer for your conveyancing in Lees.

Are the Lees conveyancing solicitors identified as being on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel, together with their details provided by Virgin Money?

Lees conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Virgin Money directly.

Can you clarify what the consequences are if my solicitor is removed from the Santander Solicitor panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Lees?

The first thing to point out is that, this is a very rare occurrence. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit at a cost.

What are the frequently found deficiencies that you witness in leases for Lees properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Lees. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Halifax, Bank of Scotland, and Bank of Ireland all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Lees - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

What is the yearly service fee and ground rent? Please inform me if there are any major works in the near future that could add a premium to the maintenance charges?

Why do I have to send my solicitor with numerous items of identification before they can commence with selling or purchasing a property in Lees?

Lees conveyancing practitioners are required by the Law Society, Solicitors Regulation Authority, HM Land Registry and current Money Laundering Regulations to record that the have checked the identity of their clients. It will also be a requirement of your bank where you are taking a mortgage. In addition they have to complete various forms, particularly those relating to Land Tax and need to have information such as your full names, national insurance number and DOB.