Buying or Selling in Hull? Tips for choosing a lawyer for your conveyancing

Humber Bridge

Choosing a Conveyancing Solicitor in Hull can be a hard task – you won’t really know what they are like until it’s too late. That's why we recommend Solicitors with not only first-class professional skills, but also local knowledge and first-hand experience of property transactions in Hull.

The wide range of issues your Conveyancing Solicitor should be aware of include:

Flats – is your solicitor familiar with Leasehold titles?

If you are buying one of the many flats or apartments in Hull, you should make sure that your Solicitor is familiar with the transfer of such properties. Flats invariably have leasehold titles, and the buyer’s Solicitor will have to make many checks, especially where a property is in a large block. It would be easy to overlook something which could cause you problems after completion, so it makes sense to have a Solicitor who is fully conversant with this type of property.

Building management is often a major concern for flat owners. Where flats are located in a small block, such as maisonette-type properties, each flat owner will usually repair and maintain their part of the building, and problems are only likely to arise if something major has to be done, such as renewal of the roof. However in larger blocks the building is usually maintained by the freeholder or a company appointed by him. The company will then recover maintenance costs from flat-owners by means of a service charge, usually collected yearly. These charges can be substantial, so it is important that you know the current level of charges.

Your Solicitor will check if a building is managed by such a company, and will obtain copies of service charge accounts for previous years, as well as the estimate for the current year. This will give you some idea of the current level of charges which you will have to pay.

Sometimes it is found that a building is not being properly managed, and that the freeholder refuses to comply with his obligations under the lease, or has disappeared. In such cases your Solicitor will be able to advise you on the potential problems, and can obtain indemnity insurance which will provide cover in the event of you suffering loss or damage because the freeholder will not carry out building repairs.

Making the proper planning and local searches in Hull:

Local searches for property in Hull are provided by Hull City Council, Guildhall, Hull HU1 2AA.

The area administered by Hull City Council includes places such as Bransholme and Sutton-on-Hull, but some parts of the urban area to the west of the City, such as Hessle and Cottingham, fall within the boundary of the neighbouring county authority. It is important for your Solicitor to know which council to send searches to.

These searches cover a wide variety of matters of importance to buyers, including planning consents and details of planning enforcement or other notices which have been served by the Council. They will also state whether or not the road is maintained by the council, and whether there are any road or rail schemes which may be scheduled in the locality. Your Solicitor should be familiar with the matters which will be revealed in these searches, and will advise you on anything relevant.

Water and drainage searches will also be carried out to check that properties are connected to mains water and drainage. Although it is unlikely that any houses in Hull are not connected to mains water, many houses are connected to private sewers which run beneath neighbouring properties before connecting to a main sewer. If this is the case then your Solicitor will need to check that there are appropriate legal rights to use any private sewer, and advise on potential liability for maintenance costs.

Registration of property titles:

The Land Registry’s Kingston upon Hull Office at Earle House, Colonial Street, Hull, HU2 8JN deals with the registration of property titles in Hull. The land registry is a government agency and once they have registered the legal title of a property it is effectively guaranteed by the government. This means that anyone buying a house or flat with a registered title can be assured that, providing their Solicitor makes proper searches and checks, they will acquire a good title to the property after completion.

Registration has been compulsory for all house purchases in Hull since 1975, so it is now unlikely that a seller’s title will still be unregistered. If that is the case then your Solicitor should be able to investigate the seller’s title by checking the old title deeds, and will ensure that on completion you will acquire a good title which can then be registered.

Was your house built on contaminated land?

With its associations with the chemical industry as well as other industries, there will always be concerns about potential land contamination caused by previous industrial use affecting houses in Hull. New homes may be built on former industrial sites, or older homes might be next to the sites of old factories where land contamination may exist. Your Solicitor will carry out an environmental search which will show any previous sources of potential contamination, as well as any current industrial use in the area.

Conservation in Hull:

Many houses in Hull are located in one of the city’s numerous conservation areas. Enhanced planning regulations apply to buildings in conservation areas, and it is important for anyone buying a house in such an area to receive proper legal advice. If alterations or other works have previously been carried out, your Solicitor will need to check that proper planning consent has been obtained for them. The council can require unauthorised works to be removed, even if they have been in place for some time.

If your home will be in a conservation area, then you will require planning consent for many alterations and works, including installing replacement windows and satellite dishes. Your Conveyancing Solicitor will advise you about this.

Will you be eligible for stamp duty relief?

Your Solicitor should know whether you will have to pay stamp duty on the purchase price. Stamp duty is a tax charged on the purchase price of houses, but the government has declared many Hull council wards as disadvantaged areas. Property buyers in these areas may not have to pay stamp duty, and your Hull Solicitor will advise you if you are exempt.

Your Solicitor will also advise if you are qualify as a first-time buyer and will not have to pay duty if the price is under £250,000.

In short, your Solicitors local knowledge will save you time and money

Instructing a Solicitor familiar with Conveyancing in Hull can mean both a quicker move for you and at a lower cost. Get a quote today from a Fridaysmove -approved Conveyancing Solicitor in Hull,or call us on 0330 660 0286 to get your home move underway.