I was referred a lawyer who has sent a quote for £1150 for no sale no fee conveyancing in Islington. I’m looking to sell a modern house for £300,000. Are these estimated fees excessive? Is it in excess of the average fee for conveyancing in Islington?

The estimate does seem a tad steep. If you shop around you might shave off some of the expense by perhaps a hundred pounds. That being said, you mightcome to rue opting for an an untested conveyancer. If is important to ensure the conveyancer can represent your lender. Do make use of our comparison tool to find a Islington conveyancing practice on the banks member panel which can often include conveyancing solicitors in Islington.

Our son-in-law is about to exchange on a new build apartment in Islington with a mortgage from Santander. His conveyancer has said that there is a delay in completing the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. Who needs to receive the form?

The document is intended to provide information to the main parties engaged in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Santander conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the valuer when requested. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Santander conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.

My partner and I are close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our house in Islington and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a possibility that the property was constructed on contaminated land. Any high street Islington lawyer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the buyers instructed an internet conveyancing practice as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Islington. Having lived in Islington for six years we know that this is a non issue. Should we contact our local Authority to seek clarification need.

It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing solicitor currently acting for you. What do they say? You should check with 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 illness)

It has been three months following my purchase conveyancing in Islington completed. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £175,000 when infact I paid £170,000. Why the discrepancy?

The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the premises from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.

I am looking at a couple of flats in Islington which have in the region of 50 years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Islington. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the premises for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease reduces and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. 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 enfranchisement can be a difficult process. We advise that you seek professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field.

After months of negotiations we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Islington. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

You certainly can. We can put you in touch with a Islington conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Islington premises is 5C Stoke Newington Road in April 2010. the Tribunal therefore concludes that the premium to be paid for the extended lease is £700.00 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 80.5 years.