We see that you have a post code search directory listing firms on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel. Do firms pay you a commission if I appoint them for our own conveyancing in Goring?

We are a listing service only for law firms wishing to communicate if they are on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel or other lender panels. We do not charge referral fees to any conveyancer that you subsequently appoint for your conveyancing in Goring.

I am selling my apartment in Goring. Will the solicitor have to be on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel in order to deal with repayment of my mortgage?

Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. It might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their specifications fairly frequently currently.

My partner and I are in the throws of viewing apartments in Goring and I am about to put in an offer. Should I already have a solicitor in place at this stage? I will be getting a mortgage with Coventry BS.

It would be prudent to commence your search sooner rather than later. After you have chosen your lawyer and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and forward their details on to the estate agent. As you are taking out a mortgage with Coventry BS, make sure you remember to check that your lawyer is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel.

Intending to buy a flat in Goring. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Building Society if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Nottingham conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.

They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Goring property lawyer is on the Nottingham conveyancing panel.

Having read lots of house buying guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Goring solicitor - who is on the Lloyds conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?

Lloyds will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Lloyds 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 Goring 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.

In what way does the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 affect my business property in Goring and how can you help?

The particular law that you refer to provides a safeguard to business leaseholders, granting the dueness to make a request to court for a renewal lease and continue in occupation when the lease comes to an end. There are limited grounds where a landlord can refrain from granting a lease renewal and the rules are involved. Fees are different for commercial conveyancing. Goring is one of our many areas of the UK in which the firms we work with have offices

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Goring where we see a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received inconsistent advice from local Goring conveyancing solicitors. Could you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

I am the registered owner of a 1 bedroom flat in Goring, conveyancing formalities finalised 5 years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Equivalent properties in Goring with a long lease are worth £191,000. The ground rent is £55 invoiced annually. The lease ends on 21st October 2076

With only 53 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £27,600 and £31,800 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range above 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 a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.