My fiance and I are planning to purchase a home in Lunt and have instructed a Lunt conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our lawyer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. have this evening contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Lunt conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?

If you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Lunt solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.

I am purchasing a property in Lunt. An unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. 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 you are obtaining a mortgage with your lawyer must check the formal instructions set out in Section 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for . The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook includes minimum specifications for solar panel roof-space leases, and are required to report to where a lease does not comply with these conditions. The provisions relate to the installation of panels on properties in England and Wales and is not limited to Lunt.

I have a mortgage with for my property in Lunt. Conveyancing has been completed 12 months ago. In the event that I decide to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform ?

Your original mortgage agreement with will provide that you need their approval before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of ’s mortgage conditions. It may be that will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a conveyancing panel solicitor.

I can not work out if my bank requires a lease extension. I have called into my local Lunt bank branch on various occasions and was told it does not affect the mortgage offer and they will lend. My Lunt conveyancing solicitor - who is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel- called to say that they refuse to lend based on their specific requirements. Who do I believe?

As long as the is on the lender panel, she or he must comply with the CML Handbook specifications for the lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the lender will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the mortgage company to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years remaining.

Should commercial conveyancing searches reveal proposed roadworks that could affect a commercial premises in Lunt?

Many commercial conveyancing solicitors in Lunt will carry out a SiteSolutions Highways report as it reduces the time that conveyancers invest in looking into accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Lunt. The search result provides definitive data on the adoption status of roads, footpaths and verges, as well as the implication of traffic schemes and the rights of way surrounding a commercial development sites in Lunt.

For each commercial conveyancing transaction in Lunt it is crucial to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. Failure to identify developments where adoption procedures have not been addressed adequately can cause delays to Lunt commercial conveyancing transactions as well as present a risk to future intentions for the site. These searches are not ordered for residential conveyancing in Lunt.

Due to the input of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a property in Lunt ahead of appointing solicitors. I have been told that there is a flying freehold element to the house. The surveyor has said that some lenders may not give a mortgage on this type of premises.

It varies from the lender to lender. Bank of Scotland has different requirements from Nationwide. Should you wish to telephone us we can look into this further with the relevant bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Lunt. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Lunt both have in the region of forty five years remaining on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold flat in Lunt is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The nearer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the value of the premises. For most purchasers and banks, leases with under 75 years become less and less marketable. On a more upbeat note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the premises for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Lunt conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease. They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that the agreed terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I invested in buying a 1 bedroom flat in Lunt, conveyancing having been completed in 1995. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Lunt with an extended lease are worth £165,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 per annum. The lease ends on 21st October 50

With just 50 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £36,100 and £41,800 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.