I am helping my niece sell her flat in Penylan. Will the conveyancing solicitor order the energy assessment or it is for me to coordinate?

After the demise of HIPs, EPC’s was retained a mandatory element of selling a house. An energy assessment needs to be to hand before the property is marketed. It is not as aspect of the sale process that law firms ordinarily arrange. If you are using a Penylan conveyancing solicitor they may be willing to arrange energy performance certificates due to their contacts with long established Penylan energy assessors

How can we tell if a Penylan conveyancing solicitor on the Barclays panel is any good?

When it comes to conveyancing in Penylan obtaining recommendations is a sensible starting point. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one advertising the lowest fees. We would always advocate that you speak with the solicitor carrying out your transaction.

Principality have agreed my mortgage in principle, my bid on a apartment in Penylan has been accepted, now what?

Your estate agent will wish to know who your solicitors are (be sure the conveyancers are on the bank’s approved list). Call up Principality or the broker and finish off any appropriate forms. Principality will instruct a valuer who will get in touch with the selling agent or seller to book an appointment. Once carried out (assuming no problems) it takes about ten days for the mortgage offer to be issued. Principality will issue the offer to you and your conveyancers. The transaction will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing in Penylan.

I used Action Conveyancing several years ago for my conveyancing in Penylan. 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 assist in tracking down 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 Penylan 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.

How does conveyancing in Penylan differ for new build properties?

Most buyers of new build property in Penylan contact us having been asked by the seller to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the premises is ready to move into. This is because new home sellers in Penylan tend to buy the site, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancing solicitors as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Penylan or who has acted in the same development.

I work for a busy estate agent office in Penylan where we see a number of leasehold sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Penylan conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner 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 proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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.

Penylan Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

You will want to find out as much as possible about the managing agents as they will impact your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you will be at the mercy of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to daily matters like the cleanliness of the common parts. You should not be shy to ask other people whether they are happy with them. Finally, be sure you discover the dates that the service fees are due to the managing agents and precisely what it includes. Please note that where the lease has no more than 80 years it will impact the value of the flat. It is worth checking with your bank that they are willing to lend given the lease term. A short lease means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this would cost. For most Penylanlease extensions you would be be obliged to have been the owner of the premises for a couple of years in order to be entitled to carry out a lease extension. Be sure to investigate if the the lease includes any unreasonable restrictions in the lease. For example it is fairly common in Penylan leases that pets are not permitted in certain buildings in Penylan. If you like the apartmentin Penylan yet your cat can’t live with you then you will be faced difficult decision.

We have selected a Penylan conveyancing solicitor for our house purchase (first time buyers) and have picked up in the engagement letter that they are not covered by the FCA. Should I be worried or is that standard with conveyancing practitioner?

We can't see why they should be. Most lawyer don't lend money. They should be governed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, who have stringent obligations in place on monies held by them.