I decided to go with a high street solicitor for our conveyancing in Plymstock recently. Looking through the official terms of business I notewe are responsible for fees even if the sale aborts. Would I be best advised to use an on-line conveyancing company promoting no move no charge conveyancing in Plymstock?

Generally there is a compromise along the lines that if "No Sale No Fee" is available then the fee levels will generally be higher to offset the cases that do not go ahead. Dont forget that such schemes rarely cover disbursements such as Plymstock conveyancing search expenses.

I am need of leasehold conveyancing for an apartment in a relatively new development (five years old) in Plymstock. The vast majority the appartments are already occupied. Do I need carry out the conveyancing searches as part of conveyancing in Plymstock?

If you getting a loan, your lender will need some (many) of the searches so you'll have no choice. If not, then Plymstock conveyancing searches are optional. No doubt your conveyancer, will ’encourage’, perhaps in the strongest possible terms, 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 demand that your lawyer to proceed without searches then your lawyer will have to follow your instructions or you will need to switch to another solicitor for your conveyancing in Plymstock.

I have a decision in principle. The lender mentioned the mortgage came with free conveyancing. Is the implication that I have to instruct their panel conveyancer as I would much rather appoint a Plymstock based conveyancing firm?

You should check but the the probability is that allocate you one of their panel lawyers should you want the "fee-free" incentive. Contact the mortgage company to determine if they offer you a cash alternative. Some banks have previously offered a £250 cashback as an alternative in which case you could put that amount towards your preferred conveyancing solicitor near Plymstock.

I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £195,000 and found one round the corner in Plymstock I like with amenity areas and station nearby, the downside is that it only has 52 years on the lease. There is not much else in Plymstock for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a short lease?

Should you need a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be an issue. Reduce the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the property for at least twenty four months you could ask them to start the process of the extension and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Plymstock conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Plymstock conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non Plymstock conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions could be of use:

How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation? If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

Leasehold Conveyancing in Plymstock - Sample of Questions you should consider before buying

Is anyone aware of any major works anticipated that will add a premium to the service costs? If a Plymstock lease has less than eighty years it will impact the value of the apartment. Check with your bank that they are happy with remaining years on the lease. Leases with less than 80 years remaining means that you will probably have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of what this will be. For most Plymstocklease extensions you will need to own the property for two years in order to be legally able to carry out a lease extension.