A term used in relation to both private children proceedings and regarding statutory child support in relation to the parent with whom a child primarily lives.

Debt secured by a pool of residential mortgages.

An addition to the basic nil-rate band (NRB), which further reduces the inheritance tax payable on death to the extent that the deceased has a qualifying residential interest.

The Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006) brought into force rules to protect an individual director's residential address from public disclosure and restricting the way in which the address can be used by the company and by Companies House. This Practice Note summarises the relevant provisions of the CA 2006, the Companies (Disclosure of Address) Regulations 2009 and the Companies (Disclosure of Address) (Amendment) Regulations 2018. Difference between service address and residential address It is important to understand the distinction under the CA 2006 between an individual director's service address and their residential address. A director’s residential address is protected information under CA 2006 and may not be used or disclosed other than in a permitted way, or disclosed on the public register unless the director gives their residential address as their service address. The service address appears on the public register. Directors commonly use the company's registered address as their service address, but they could use their own residential address if they wanted to and had no objection to that address being placed on

This Checklist is for use where you are acting for the buyer on the acquisition of a registered freehold residential property either with vacant possession or subject to a lease or leases. It is not exhaustive and will not cover every eventuality for every transaction. You must always consider whether there are any other issues that need to be addressed. It includes the following key sections: • Preliminary matters • Does the buyer need a mortgage to acquire the property? • Before exchange of contracts • Are you ready to exchange? • Exchange of contracts • Post exchange steps • Between exchange and completion • Are you ready to complete? • Completion • Post completion Preliminary matters Have you taken instructions from the buyer? Effective due diligence and transaction management require a sound understanding of the buyer’s needs and of the proposed terms of the purchase. Full instructions should be taken and you should clarify any part of your instructions which are unclear or unusual. Consider whether any additional specialist advice might be

[insert names and address of clients] Date [insert date] Dear [insert names of clients] Re: Proposed purchase of [insert address of property] As you are purchasing the above property together, it is necessary for you to decide whether you are going to hold the property as: • joint tenants, or • tenants in common This is an important distinction because it governs how your respective interests in the property will be treated. Joint tenants If you hold the property as joint tenants, you will both own the whole of the property rather than a specific share of the property. If the property is sold while you hold it as joint tenants, the sale proceeds will be shared between you equally. The most important effect of holding the property as joint tenants is that you cannot leave an interest held as a joint tenant to anyone in your will. If you die, your interest in the property does not form part of your estate but will pass automatically to your surviving co-owner, who will then be free to deal with it

This Practice Note looks at enquiries before contract (also called pre-contract enquiries, preliminary enquiries or standard enquiries) in residential conveyancing transactions. It assumes that the parties to the transaction have adopted the Law Society Conveyancing Protocol (2019) (the Protocol) and that the buyer’s conveyancer will also be acting for a lender in accordance with the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook (the UKFML Handbook) or the Building Societies Association Mortgage Instructions (the BSA Instructions). See Practice Notes: The Law Society’s Conveyancing Protocol and Lenders' instructions—the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders' Handbook and the Building Societies Association Mortgage Instructions. Why raise enquiries? At common law, the underlying principle is ‘caveat emptor’ or ‘let the buyer beware’ and so a seller is only under a limited obligation to provide a buyer with information about the property. It is largely up to the buyer to make sure that they know what they are buying in terms of the nature of the property and any rights or liabilities which may attach to it. A buyer’s conveyancer

If you own a leasehold flat, your property can become harder to sell, more difficult to mortgage, and less valuable overall as the term of your lease grows shorter. One of the most important steps you can take to protect and enhance the value of your property is to extend the term of your lease. This guide provides an overview of the lease extension process, from understanding why it matters, to navigating the legal procedures, understanding costs, and completing the transaction. Whether you are considering a formal statutory lease extension under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 (referred to as ‘the 1993 Act’ in this guide) or exploring an informal agreement directly with your landlord, this guide will help you make informed decisions at every stage. 1 Understanding leasehold ownership 1.1 A right to occupy for a fixed term When you own a leasehold property, you own the right to occupy and use that property for a fixed period of time, known as the ‘term’ of the lease. Outright ownership—the

[Insert name and address of client] Date [insert date] Dear [insert name] Re: Proposed purchase of [insert address of property] You have instructed us in connection with the purchase of the above leasehold [flat OR house]. This letter is intended to provide you with an outline of: • the difference between freehold and leasehold ownership • how the conveyancing process differs for leasehold properties, and • the key financial issues relating to leasehold ownership which you should be aware of before proceeding with your purchase It is not intended to be a detailed report on your particular property purchase; we will provide this closer to exchange of contracts. Leasehold and freehold ownership Freehold ownership of land gives owners greater control of their property. Freehold owners are generally free to deal with their properties as they see fit—for example, in terms of carrying out alterations to the property or letting it out on a long or short-term basis. In addition, the property remains theirs until such time as it is sold or transferred to someone else. There may be some burdens attached to a freehold

[Insert names and address of client] Date [insert date] Dear [insert name] Re: Proposed purchase of [insert address of property] You have instructed us in connection with the purchase of the above leasehold flat. We understand that the flat is located within a multi-storey residential building which is likely to fall within the building safety regime set out in the Building Safety Act 2022 (referred to as ‘BSA 2022’ in this letter). This letter is intended to provide you with an outline of the key issues arising under BSA 2022 which you should be aware of before proceeding with your purchase and how they will affect the conveyancing process. It is not intended to be a report on your particular property purchase and does not address other issues relevant to a leasehold purchase (such as service charges and repair generally) which we will advise on separately. Background to BSA 2022 BSA 2022 applies to certain high-rise residential buildings and is intended to improve building safety and to protect

This Practice Note looks at some of the key issues in relation to professional consultant’s certificates (also sometimes referred to as architect’s certificates) which may be encountered in residential property transactions. It is aimed primarily at practitioners dealing with the sale and purchase of newly built or recently converted properties, self-build homes, and smaller residential developments where the developer has not enrolled with a recognised structural warranty provider. This Practice Note provides comprehensive practical guidance on the nature, purpose and limitations of professional consultant’s certificates, the form in which they should be presented, the obligations on practitioners acting for both buyers and lenders, the steps that must be taken in relation to assignment, the advice that should be given to clients, and the alternative protections available where a certificate is inadequate, unacceptable to the lender, or has expired. Introduction Professional consultant’s certificates arise most commonly in transactions involving newly built or recently converted properties, self-build homes, and smaller residential developments where the developer has not enrolled with a recognised structural warranty provider. Despite

This Checklist is for use where you are acting for the seller on the sale of a registered freehold residential property either with vacant possession or subject to a lease or leases. It is not exhaustive and will not cover every eventuality for every transaction. You must always consider whether there are any other issues that need to be addressed. Preliminary matters Have you taken instructions from the client? Effective due diligence and transaction management require a sound understanding of the seller’s needs and of the proposed terms of the sale. Full instructions should be taken and you should clarify any part of your instructions which are unclear or unusual. Consider whether any additional specialist advice might be required; for example, planning advice where the sale is to be conditional upon planning permission being obtained. The table below contains some of the key matters on which instructions should be obtained at the outset. This list is not exhaustive and you may need to request information on additional issues at this stage.