I note that there are debates on Chancel Insurance on online forums. Am I compelled to have this when buying a house in Winchester? or I am told that there is historic law that means some homeowners residing in a parish church boundary may be liable to contribute towards repairs to the chancel in proximity to the church. Is this appropriate for conveyancing in Winchester?

Unless a previous purchase of the premises completed after 12 October 2013 you can assume that lawyers carrying out conveyancing in Winchester to remain encouraging a chancel search and or chancel repair liability insurance.

I am buying my first flat in Winchester with a mortgage from Clydesdale. The sellers would not reduce the amount so I negotiated 6k of additionals instead. The sale representative suggested that I not to tell my conveyancer about this side-deal as it will jeopardize my loan with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

Over the last few months I have been searching for a ground for flat up to £235,500 and found one round the corner in Winchester I like with amenity areas and transport links nearby, however it only has 49 years on the lease. There is not much else in Winchester suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a short lease?

If you require a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term may be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you can ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer concerning this matter.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Winchester where we have witnessed a number of flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received conflicting advice from local Winchester conveyancing solicitors. Please can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease 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 buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

Winchester Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

Its a good idea to find out as much as you can concerning the company managing the block as they can either make your life much simpler or uncomfortable. Being a leasehold owner you will be in the clutches of the managing agents both financially and when it comes to every day matters like the tidiness of the common parts. Ask other tenants what they think of them. In conclusion, investigate as to the dates that the maintenance charges are due to the managing agents and precisely what you get for your money. Best to be warned if redecorating or some other significant cost is due shortly to be shared amongst the leaseholders and will materially increase the the maintenance fees or necessitate a one off invoice. Are any of leasehold owners in dispute over their service charge liability?

My wife and I have selected a Winchester conveyancing solicitor for our house purchase (first time buyers) and have spotted in the terms and conditions that they are not overseen by the FCA. Am I right to be concerned or is that standard with conveyancer?

We can't see why they should be. Most conveyancer don't lend money. You should check that they are governed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, who have specific obligations in relation to monies sitting by them.