I was notified today by my estate agent that my Fenham property lawyer is not on the bank Solicitor panel. How can I be certain that this is indeed the case?

Your first step should be to call your Fenham lawyer directly. You lawyer should notify you of the situation. If they are not on the panel they may recommend you to a Fenham conveyancing practice that is on the approved list of lawyers for your lender.

Do I need to visit the offices of the solicitor to sign the mortgage deed? If so, I will instruct a firm who offer conveyancing in Fenham so that I can attend their offices if required.

As opposed to 12 years ago, the vast majority lenders no longer oblige their conveyancing panel solicitor to witness the borrowers signature. You will still be obliged to supply identification documents and there are still distinct benefits to choosing a local solicitor, in your situation a conveyancing solicitor in Fenham.

Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold element on a house I have offered on a fortnight ago in what was supposed to be a quick, chain free conveyancing. Fenham is the location of the property. What do you suggest?

Flying freeholds in Fenham are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Fenham you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds very carefully. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Fenham 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 looking at a two maisonettes in Fenham which have in the region of fifty years left on the leases. Should I regard a short lease as a deal breaker?

A lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As a lease shortens the saleability of the lease decreases and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is often a good idea to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease enfranchisement can be a protracted process. We advise that you seek professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this arena.

I bought a ground floor flat in Fenham, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Fenham with over 90 years remaining are worth £186,000. The ground rent is £55 levied per year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2077

With just 53 years left to run the likely cost is going to be between £27,600 and £31,800 plus professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.

My fiance and I have just had an offer accepted on a apartment and had an appointment on Monday with the Post Office for the mortgage. They advised us that when it comes to appointing a solicitor that if they are not on their approved panel of conveyancing practitioners then we will have to pay out an extra fee of about two hundred pounds. This is is due to the fact that they will then have to instruct a property lawyer to act on their behalf as well as the one we select on our behalf and we will be on the hook for their costs. I have requested the Post Office to supply me with a list so I can obtain estimates only from their approved lawyers but was told they dont have such a list to hand over. Is there a simple way of finding out who is on a lender panel?

You should ask the Post Office what their panel criteria is for a conveyancer.Then ask the conveyancer of your choice whether they fit that criteria and have they acted on loans for the Post Office before. Where the answer to those is yes, then just double check with the Post Office. Another option is to utilise our search facility and we may be able to find you a conveyancer in Fenham on the approved list for the Post Office.