We are about to exchange contracts for a ground floor flat in Sherborne. We encountered a snag. Our loan offer with Britannia expires on 8/9/2025 but the sellers are suggesting a completion date of 10/9/2025. Can one extend the loan offer?

The best person to address this question is your lawyer who will assess whether he or she is better off negotiating with the mortgage company, owner’s solicitors, estate agents or conceivably all three given what has gone on in your conveyancing as of today.

Is there a reason why leasehold purchase conveyancing in Sherborne costs more?

The conveyancing charges on a leasehold premises in Sherborne is inevitably higher than on a freehold property. This is due to the additional time required in communicating with the landlord and management company to obtain information concerning whether the rent and maintenance charges have been cleared and whether there are any major works due in the near future on repairs or maintenance of the block.

I own a terraced Victorian property in Sherborne. Conveyancing lawyer represented me and Chelsea Building Society. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw two entries: one for freehold, the second leasehold under the matching property. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?

You need to assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Sherborne and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they sell they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with lenders. You can also question the situation with the conveyancing solicitor who carried out the work.

My husband and I are 17 days into a residential purchase having been referred to solicitors by the selling agent to handle our conveyancing in Sherborne. I am am extremely disappointed with the level of service. Can you help me find new lawyers?

They would need to be very poor in order to consider diss instructing them. Has the mortgage been issued? In the event that it has you will need to make them aware of the new contact details and get the loan are re-issued. Your new solicitor ideally should be on the banks approved list to avoid added charges and complications. So that should be your starting point. Our search tool can help you find a bank approved conveyancer for your conveyancing in Sherborne

Can you offer any advice when it comes to finding a Sherborne conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

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

If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not? How many lease extensions have they completed in Sherborne in the last year?

Leasehold Conveyancing in Sherborne - Examples of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

You should be aware if it is fewer than 80 years it will affect the value of the flat. It is worth checking with your lender that they are happy with residual term of the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of what this would cost. Remember, in most cases you will be be obliged to have been the owner of the residence for 24 months before you are legally able to extend the lease. For most Sherborne leaseholds the outlay for major works tend not to be included within maintenance charges, although a few managing agents in Sherborne require tenants to contribute towards a reserve fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance.