Will my conveyancing lawyers need to check that the building insurance for my purchase of a house in Thornaby. My lender is The Mortgage Works
The Mortgage Works have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook. As of 23/9/2025, the requirements read as follows :
Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and identified one close by in Thornaby I like with open areas and station in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 49 years on the lease. There is not much else in Thornaby in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a short lease?
If you require a home loan the shortness of the lease may be problematic. Discount the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the property for at least twenty four months you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this matter.
How do I search for a Thornaby solicitor on the Norwich and Peterborough Building Society conveyancing panel? I have wheels and am prepared to travel upto 25miles to meet the conveyancer.
You can use the search on this website. Please choose the bank and your location and you will see a number of Thornaby conveyancing lawyers locally. We have detailed some Thornaby conveyancing firms at the bottom of this page and you can ring them to verify if they are on the Norwich and Peterborough Building Society member panel
My father has recommend that I use his lawyers for conveyancing in Thornaby. Should I use them?
No doubt the best way to choose a conveyancing lawyer is to get guidance from friends or relatives who have experience in using the firm that you are considering.
I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in Thornaby where we have experienced a number of flat sales jeopardised due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Thornaby conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?
Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.
An alternative approach is 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.
I purchased a garden flat in Thornaby, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Comparable flats in Thornaby with an extended lease are worth £190,000. The ground rent is £65 charged once a year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2086
With just 61 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £19,000 and £22,000 plus legals.
The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.
New build sellers have suggested I use a conveyancer and I've obtained a quote from them. It's nearly £250 less expensive than my family Thornaby conveyancing practitioner. Should I use them?
Developers frequently have panels of conveyancing practitioners who are quick and who know the builder's paperwork and solicitor. Plenty of developers offer an incentive to choose a preferred lawyer for this reason, any increased fees can be avoided and a developer will not suggest a conveyancing warehouse and run the risk of having the conveyancing delayed when they demand an exchange within a tight time frame. The argument for not agreeing to use the suggested solicitor is that they may prove unwilling to fight for your interests at the risk of alienating the sellers. Where you have concerns that this may be the case you should stick with your high street Thornaby property lawyer.