I require conveyancing for an apartment in a fairly new development (five years old) in West Hill. 95% of the properties are already occupied. Is it really necessary to order conveyancing searches as part of conveyancing in West Hill?

Where you are obtaining a mortgage, your bank will insist on some (many) of the searches so you'll have no choice. If not, then West Hill conveyancing searches are for you to decide upon. No doubt your conveyancer, will 'advise', perhaps in the strongest possible terms, that you should not go ahead without searches, but he or she is duty bound in this regard. 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 ask you to appoint a different lawyer for your conveyancing in West Hill.

Finally the sale completed on my house in West Hill last November but the buyer keeps texting me to moan that his solicitor is waiting to hear from myconveyancer. What are the post completion sale legalities now that I have sold?

After completion of your disposal your lawyer is duty bound to send the transfer deeds and all additional paperwork to the purchaser's solicitors. Depending on the transaction, your conveyancer must also evidence that the mortgage has been redeemed to the purchasers solicitors. There is unlikely to be post completion tasks specific conveyancing in West Hill.

Should our solicitor be raising enquiries about flooding as part of the conveyancing in West Hill.

Flooding is a growing risk for conveyancers specialising in conveyancing in West Hill. Some people will buy a property in West Hill, completely expectant that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, leaving to one side the physical damage, if a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, satisfactory building insurance, or dispose of the property. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the buyer.

Conveyancers are not qualified to offer advice on flood risk, but there are a various searches that can be initiated by the buyer or on a buyer’s behalf which should figure out the risks in West Hill. The conventional set of information sent to a purchaser’s conveyancer (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) includes a standard question of the owner to discover if the premises has suffered from flooding. In the event that the property has been flooded in past and is not revealed by the owner, then a buyer may bring a claim for damages resulting from an misleading response. A buyer’s solicitors may also carry out an enviro search. This should indicate whether there is a recorded flood risk. If so, more detailed inquiries will need to be made.

I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £195,000 and found one close by in West Hill I like with open areas and railway links in the vicinity, however it's only got 51 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in West Hill in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a short lease?

If you need a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be a potential deal breaker. Discount the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the property for at least 2 years you could ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer about this matter.

My boyfriend is purchasing a studio flat in West Hill. He was given a quote by the conveyancing practitioner connected to the selling agents and it came to £1250 . It was 7 years ago I sold and bought a home and it cost was £450. Have costs really gone up that much?

What does the conveyancing estimate include? Is it just for the legal fees, or what you will be paying in total (for instance West Hill searches, land registry fees, etc)