I plan on purchasing a maisonette in Patcham. My Solicitor is not listed on the bank approved panel. Is it possible for me to continue with my Patcham conveyancing solicitor notwithstanding that they are not on the lender list of approved lawyers?

Various options include

• Proceed with your chosen Patcham lawyer but your lender will undoubtedly appoint a conveyancer from their conveyancing panel. This will result in additional fees together with potential frustration.
• Appoint a fresh conveyancing practitioner to conduct the conveyancing, ensuring that they are on the mortgage company conveyancing panel.
• Appeal to your solicitor to apply to join the mortgage company panel

We previously selected conveyancing lawyers with offices in Patcham on the Yorkshire BS solicitor approved list. They have just billed me a further charge for dealing with the Yorkshire BS mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by Yorkshire BS?

As unfair as it may seem, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your conveyancing practitioner is entitled to charge a fee for this. This fee is not dictated by Yorkshire BS but by your Patcham solicitor. Numerous firms on the Yorkshire BS panel will levy ’dealing with mortgage’ fee but some firms include it on their overall fee.

The mortgage over my property is with TSB for my property in Patcham. Conveyancing was finalised a year ago. Should I wish to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform TSB?

TSB must be informed of your intention before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of TSB’s mortgage conditions. It may be that TSB will permit you to let out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact TSB directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a TSB conveyancing panel firm.

I have instructed a Patcham conveyancer having made sure that they are on the UBS conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?

UBS will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually UBS will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Patcham surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.

I require quick conveyancing in Patcham as I am under pressure to sign on the dotted line within one month. A home loan is not required. Is it possible to decline from having conveyancing searches to save fees and time?

As you are are a cash purchaser you are at liberty not to have searches carried out although no law firm would suggest that you don't. Drawing on our experience of conveyancing in Patcham the following are instances of what can show up and therefore affect market value: Enforcement Actions, Overdue Charges, Outstanding Grants, Unadopted Roads,...

I have just appointed agents to market my garden flat in Patcham. Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon, but I have just had a quarterly service charge demand – Do I pay up?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should pay the service charge as you normally would given that all ground rent and service payments should be allotted as part of the financial calculations for completion monies, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I own a 1st floor flat in Patcham, conveyancing formalities finalised 4 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Corresponding flats in Patcham with a long lease are worth £190,000. The ground rent is £45 invoiced annually. The lease runs out on 21st October 2088

With 62 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £17,100 and £19,800 as well as costs.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to be perfect, at a reasonable price which is making it more attractive. I have since been informed that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Patcham. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been appointed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Patcham are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Patcham in which case you should be shopping around for a Patcham conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions such as requiring the landlord’sconsent to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should appraise you on the various issues.