I am obtaining a mortgage with Nat West. My intention is to enlist the help of a Licensed Conveyancer in Deal. Does the Nat West Conveyancing panel include Licensed Conveyancers?

The Nat West approved solicitor list is, like many other lenders, associated to the Council or Mortgage Lenders or BSA, open to Licensed Conveyancers regulated by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.

Do banks and building societies provide you with an approved list of Deal conveyancing solicitors? How do you know who is on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel?

Deal conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Bank of Ireland directly.

What is your number one tip for choosing a conveyancing solicitor in Deal

It would be unwise to be seduced by the lowest Deal conveyancing costs illustration. You really do get what you’re paying for when it comes to property lawyers. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you go into the conveyancing with your eyes wide open.

I have decided to exercise my right to buy my property in Deal off the council. I have a mortgage offer with Nationwide. Conveyancing is not something I have any knowledge of. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should have one. Any advice?

It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with Nationwide, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Nationwide conveyancing panel.

I recently had an offer agreed on a house in Deal. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their lawyer. I paid an on account payment of £225. Soon after, the conveyancing practitioner called me to say that they were not on the Barclays conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?

You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Barclays panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.

I am looking at a two flats in Deal which have approximately fifty years remaining on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

A lease is a right to use the premises for a prescribed time frame. As a lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to extend the lease term. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage companies less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you seek professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this arena.

I own a basement flat in Deal, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2002. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Deal with a long lease are worth £227,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease terminates on 21st October 2098

You have 72 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.

What type of premises does your Deal conveyancing quotes apply to?

The quotes issued are only applicable to standard domestic homes in England & Wales. Where you have any different needs for instance industrial or agricultural property or commercial conveyancing in Deal please contact us to consider your requirements .