IfI were to purchase a freehold housein St Helens mortgage fee and dispense with a survey and no local authority searches how much could I expect to have to pay for conveyancing in St Helens?
The only saving you would achieve is the costs for searches. Your conveyancing practitioner is obliged to do the vast majority of work - money laundering, liaising with the sellers lawyer, stamp duty return, register the title etc. You might save a bit for them not having to register a charge however it won't be a lot.
My flat in St Helens is up for sale and I have accepted an offer. Does my solicitor need to be on the Nottingham conveyancing panel in order to deal with redeeming my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Nottingham conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. It might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their panel criteria fairly frequently at the moment.
My wife and I are buying a property in St Helens. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a conveyancer? On completion day we have to put funds into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our deposit?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
I just acquired a flat at auction in St Helens. Conveyancing is necessary. What is next?
Having for in every practical sense signed on the dotted line you will need to choose a conveyancing solicitor as a matter of urgency as you will have a pending a fixed date to complete the transaction. An auction property will have an associated legal set of papers. This should include evidence of title and search results. Where you are dealing with leasehold premises the auction pack may contain a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and other conveyancing documentation specific to a leasehold property. You should pass this on to your appointed conveyancing solicitor as soon as possible. You also need to ensure that your finances are in order to complete the transaction on the set completion date.
My offer was accepted on a property in St Helens on 26/8/2025, valuation was booked 4 days later, received a clean bill of health. Conveyancer appointed, so the only thing outstanding was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to Aldermore and chasing them on my offer, I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the Aldermore conveyancing panel. Can the lender hold off the offer?
A lender would not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Aldermore to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the Aldermore conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
I bought my flat on 12 May and the transaction details are still not registered. Need I be worried? My conveyancing solicitor in St Helens expressed confidence that it will be recorded in a couple of weeks. Are titles in St Helens uniquely lengthy to register?
There is nothing unique about conveyancing in St Helens registration formalities. Rather than based on location, timeframes can adjust depending on the party submitting the application, whether it is in order and if the Land registry communicate with any interested parties. At present in the region of three quarters of submission are completed within 12 days but occasionally there can be extensive hold-ups. Registration occurs once the buyer is living at the property thus 'speed' is not usually primary concern but where there is a degree of urgency associated with the registration then you or your solicitor can contact the land registry and explain the circumstances.
How does conveyancing in St Helens differ for newly converted properties?
Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in St Helens contact us having been asked by the housebuilder to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the property is completed. This is because new home sellers in St Helens typically purchase 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 accustomed to new build conveyancing in St Helens or who has acted in the same development.
Can you offer any advice when it comes to appointing a St Helens conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?
If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a St Helens conveyancing firm) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggest that you talk with several firms including non St Helens conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions could be helpful:
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Can they put you in touch with clients in St Helens who can give a testimonial? What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?
St Helens Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should consider before Purchasing
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The best form of lease arrangement is if the freehold reversion is owned by the leaseholders. In this arrangement the lessees enjoy control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is often employed if it is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves. Many St Helens leasehold flats will incur a service bill for maintenance of the block invoiced on behalf of the management company. Should you acquire the flat you will have to meet this contribution, usually periodically during the year. This can vary from several hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built blocks. In all probability there will be a rentcharge for you to pay yearly, this is usually not a large sum, say around £25-£75 but you should to check it because on occasion it could be surprisingly expensive.