My wife and I are acquiring an apartment in Canton. My lawyer is not listed on the lender solicitor panel. Is it possible for me to use my Canton conveyancing solicitor even though they are excluded from the lender list of approved lawyers?

You will need to use a property lawyer to deal with the formalities if you take out a mortgage to buy your property. They will conduct all the necessary legal checks on the property, make sure that you’re registered as proprietor and ensure that all the necessary mortgage documentation is dealt with. One can appoint a Canton lawyer of your choice. Nevertheless, where the solicitor selected is not on the lender approved list supplemental charges will arise as separate legal representation will be required by them. Conveyancing panel applications may be submitted, so provided your solicitor has not historically sought membership they should take the opportunity to apply.

What is the difference between a licensed conveyancer and conveyancing solicitor in Canton

There are many registered licenced Conveyancers in Canton and Solicitor partnerships in Canton who provide Conveyancing services We would stress that the two are supervised by regulatory bodies with both specialising in the legal aspects of transferring property. The two can conduct other property legal work such as remortgage conveyancing, lease extensions and transfer of equity conveyancing.

Are all Canton Conveyancing Quality Solicitors on the Santander conveyancing list of approved practices?

Some major banks and building societies now utilise the accreditation scheme as the kick off point for Panel approval such as HSBC and Santander. CQS accreditation however is no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. Nevertheless,the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitors wishing to remain on their panels.

We are getting the release of further monies on our home loan from Clydesdale as we want to carry out improvements to our house in Canton. Do we need to choose a local Canton solicitor on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel to handle the paperwork?

Clydesdale would not normally require firms on their conveyancing panel to handle the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Clydesdale list.

I used Arc property Solicitors a few years ago for my conveyancing in Canton. I now require my papers but the law firm has closed. What do I do?

Do contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Canton of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously instructed, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold element on a property I have offered on two weeks back in what should have been a simple, no chain conveyancing. Canton is where the house is located. Can you shed any light on this issue?

Flying freeholds in Canton are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Canton you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Canton may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.

I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agency in Canton where we have witnessed a number of flat sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given conflicting advice from local Canton conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Canton - A selection of Questions you should ask before buying

The majority of Canton leasehold flats will incur a service bill for maintenance of the block set on behalf of the landlord. If you buy the flat you will have to pay this amount, usually in instalments accross the year. This could differ from a few hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for bigger purpose-built buildings. In all probability there will be a rentcharge to be met yearly, normally this is not a exorbitant sum, say about £50-£100 but you should to enquire it because sometimes it can be prohibitively expensive. Can you tell me if there are any major works in the planning that will likely add a premium to the maintenance fees? It is important to be aware if window replacement or some other major work is anticipated to be shared between the leaseholders and will dramatically increase the the service fees or necessitate a one time payment.