About to place an offer on a leasehold property in Byfleet. The property agents tell me that it is usual for flats in Byfleet to have less than 75 years left on the lease. I am taking out a mortgage with Tesco Bank. Is this going to be acceptable if the lease has 69 years left.
Most leasehold conveyancing experts should be able to deal with a lease extension. if you are securing a mortgage then your lender may insist that the lease be extended before competition. Tesco Bank have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook in relation to minimum unexpired lease terms. As of 28/3/2025 the requirements read as follows :
We are getting the release of further monies on our home loan from Barclays as we want to conduct a loft conversion to our house in Byfleet. Do we need to choose a bricks and mortar Byfleet solicitor on the Barclays conveyancing panel to deal with the paperwork?
Barclays don't usually instruct firms on their conveyancing panel to deal with such a matter. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Barclays conveyancing panel.
I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Kent Reliance. I assume I don't need a Byfleet conveyancer on the Kent Reliance panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.
If you have finished paying off your Kent Reliance mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Kent Reliance mortgage from the register. Kent Reliance, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where Kent Reliance has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- Kent Reliance has instructed the Land Registry to do so
I am due to exchange contracts on my apartment. I had a double glazing fitted in July 2006, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My purchaser’s mortgage company, Yorkshire BS are being pedantic. The Byfleet solicitor who is on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel is saying indemnity insurance will be fine but Yorkshire BS are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do Yorkshire BS have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that Yorkshire BS have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Yorkshire BS may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
My friend suggested that if I am buying in Byfleet I should ask my conveyancer to perform a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?
A search of this type is occasionally included in the estimate for your Byfleet conveyancing searches. It is a large report of more than thirty pages, listing and detailing important information about Byfleet around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Byfleet Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average Property Price, Crime details, Byfleet Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information about Byfleet.
Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up as part of conveyancing in Byfleet?
Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Byfleet. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’
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Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Byfleet with the aim of speeding up the sale process?
- Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Byfleet can be reduced where you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to put together the leasehold information which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers. A minority of Byfleet leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this applies to your lease, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers. You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but it would be advisable verify this via your conveyancers. A purchaser's lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is less than 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you identify whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale. Many freeholders or Management Companies in Byfleet levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Byfleet. If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Arranging a duplicate share certificate can be a time consuming formality and delays many a Byfleet conveyancing deal. If a new share certificate is necessary, do contact the company officers or managing agents (where applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
Byfleet Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Queries Prior to buying
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How many years remain on the lease? For most Byfleet leaseholds the outlay for major works tend not to be included within service charges, albeit that some managing agents in Byfleet require leasehold owners to contribute towards a reserve fund and this is used to offset against larger works. How is the lease structured?