I have just been advised by my estate agent that my Barking property lawyer is not on the lender Solicitor panel. What can I do to be sure if this is correct?

You need to contact your Barking conveyancer. You lawyer should advise you of the situation. If they are not on the panel they could put your in touch with solicitors on the conveyancing panel for your mortgage company.

We are a couple about to exchange contracts for a garden flat in Barking. We encountered a snag. Our loan offer with Birmingham Midshires runs out on 4/3/2026 but the vendors are putting forward a completion date of 6/3/2026. Can one extend the loan expiry date?

The best person to deal with your issue is your solicitors who is in a position to determine if they corresponding with the mortgage broker, owner’s conveyancers, selling agents or possibly all parties based on the history of your transaction to date.

I am planning on selling our home in Barking and according to the buyers it appears that there is a possibility that the property was constructed land that was not decontaminated. A local lawyer would know this is not the case. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers used an internet conveyancing outfit rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Barking. Having lived in Barking for 5 years we know that this is a non issue. Is it a good idea to contact our local Authority to obtain confirmation need.

It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing firm already. Are they able to advise? You should enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same sickness)

Given that I will soon spend 450k on a garden flat in Barking I would like to talk to a lawyer concerning thehouse move ahead of giving the go ahead to the firm. Can this be arranged?

This is something that we encourage - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you liaising with the solicitor who will be carrying out your property ownership legalities in Barking.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - every client is unique person, not a file reference. The solicitors that we put you in touch with believe that the figure you are provided with for residential conveyancing in Barking should be the amount on the final invoice that you end up paying.

After months of correspondence we simply can't agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Barking. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

Most definitely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Barking conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Barking residence is 240 Strone Road in January 2014. the tribunal held that the price to be paid for the freehold interest was£23,538 of which£13,017 is attributable to the ground floor flat and £10,521 to the
first floor flat. This case affected 2 flats. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 65.5 years.

What are the frequently found deficiencies that you see in leases for Barking properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Barking. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises

You will encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Barclays , The Mortgage Works, and Britannia all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to pull out.