Me and my partner are purchasing a property in Beckenham. I might seem paranoid but how we can trust a solicitor? On the day of competition we have to send our life savings into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our deposit?

Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.

I am purchasing a property in Beckenham. An unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Nottingham have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?

Given that your lender is Nottingham your lawyer must comply with the conveyancing instructions outlined in Part 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Nottingham. The CML Handbook sets out minimum requirements for solar panel roof-space leases, and conveyancing practitioners are required to report to Nottingham where a lease fails to comply with these provisions. The provisions relate to the installation of panels on properties nationwide and is not limited to Beckenham.

My partner and I are spending time viewing apartments in Beckenham and I am about to put in an offer. Is it best to have a solicitor on ‘stand by’? I will be getting a mortgage with Nottingham.

You should start obtaining conveyancing quotes from solicitors ASAP. After you have chosen your lawyer and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and forward their contact information on to the EA. Given that you are seeking a mortgage with Nottingham, make sure you remember to check that your lawyer is on the Nottingham conveyancing panel.

Various online forums that I have come across warn that are the number one reason for stalling in Beckenham house deals. Is that correct?

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) released determinations of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature amongst the top 10 causes of hindrances during the legal transfer of property. Searches are unlikely to be the root cause of slowing down conveyancing in Beckenham.

I am looking for a flat up to £245,000 and identified one near me in Beckenham I like with open areas and railway links nearby, however it's only got 52 years on the lease. There is not much else in Beckenham in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a lease with such few years left?

If you need a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term may be an issue. Reduce the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the property for at least twenty four months you can ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer regarding this matter.

Last September I purchased a leasehold house in Beckenham. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I own a garden flat in Beckenham. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the amount due for the purchase of the freehold?

if there is a absentee landlord or where there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to judgment on the price payable.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Beckenham residence is 26 Manor Road in July 2010. the Tribunal decided that price to be paid for the freehold was £12,420 This case was in relation to 2 flats. The unexpired term as at the valuation date was 76.75 and 88.83.

We are midway through buying a residence in Beckenham. Conveyancing solicitor has phoned to say the title is "Leasehold". Does this impact the salability of the house?

Beckenham conveyancing does not in most situations involve leasehold houses. The crucial consideration here is the length of lease and the ground rent. If there are over a hundred years remaining with a peppercorn rent, it's almost the same as freehold, so it’s unlikely to impact the marketability too much.

At the other end of the spectrum, if it's, say, 50 years it is bound to have a significant effect on the saleability, and probably wouldn't be mortgageable. The remaining lease term and ground rent will be stated in the lease provided to your property lawyer.