My partner and I are hoping to acquire a home in Thetford and are in fact using a Thetford conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our property lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with a view to exchanging next week. The Royal Bank of Scotland have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Thetford lawyer is not on their conveyancing panel. What do we do from here?

Where you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' solicitors to also represent the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Thetford lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.

I sincerely hope you can help me. My Thetford conveyancer is informing me me that he has toconduct Thetford conveyancing searches asthe firm are on the HSBCapproved lawyer panel. Is my lawyer right?

You have limited options available to you. Given that you are taking out a loan with a mortgage company your conveyancing practitioner has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the CML Conveyancing Handbook. Your property lawyer would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of your lender’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to comply with the CML Handbook specifications . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Thetford conveyancing searches.

How does conveyancing in Thetford differ for new build properties?

Most buyers of new build premises in Thetford come to us having been asked by the developer to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the property is ready to move into. This is because new home sellers in Thetford tend to acquire the real estate, 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 conveyancers 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 Thetford or who has acted in the same development.

My cousin has urged me to instruct his conveyancing solicitors in Thetford. Do I follow his advice?

There are no two ways about it the ideal way to find a conveyancing lawyer is to have recommendations from friends or relatives who have used the solicitor that you are contemplating using.

Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Thetford. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Thetford - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title. For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Thetford - Sample of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

Plenty Thetford leasehold flats will be liable to pay a service bill for maintenance of the building set by the management company. If you acquire the property you will have to meet this charge, usually in instalments throughout the year. This may vary from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built blocks. In all likelihood there will be a rentcharge for you to pay annual, this is usually not a exorbitant figure, say about £50-£100 but you should to enquire it because occasionally it can be surprisingly expensive. What is the yearly service fee and ground rent? Is there a share of the freehold?