Me and my fiance are buying a 2 bedroom apartment in Sawston with a mortgage. We have a Sawston lawyer, however the lender advise he's not on their "panel". It appears that we have little choice but to instruct one of the bank panel conveyancing practices or keep our Sawston property lawyer and pay for one of their panel ones to act for them. We consider that this is inequitable; are we not able to demand that the bank use our Sawston conveyancing practitioner ?

No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your Sawston conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

Have purchased a a semi-detached house in Sawston , What is the estimated time for the Land Registry to deal with the formalities evidencing my ownership? My Sawston conveyancing solicitor works at snail pace, so I want to check that my ownership is registered.

There is nothing unique when it comes to conveyancing in Sawston registration formalities. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timescales can vary according to the party submitting the application, whether it is in order and if the Land registry communicate with any other parties. At present approximately three quarters of submission are fully addressed within two weeks but occasionally there can be protracted delays. Registration takes place after the buyer is living at the premises therefore post completion formalities is not usually an essential issue but where there is a degree of urgency associated with the registration then you or your conveyancer can speak with the land registry and explain the circumstances.

Over the last few months I have been searching for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and found one close by in Sawston I like with a park and station nearby, the downside is that it only has 49 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Sawston in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a short lease?

Should you need a home loan the remaining unexpired lease term will be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you could request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer concerning this matter.

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Sawston conveyancing firm to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Sawston conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you speak with two or three firms including non Sawston conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. The following questions might be useful:

If they are not ALEP accredited then what is the reason? What are the costs for lease extension work?

I inherited a basement flat in Sawston, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Sawston with a long lease are worth £180,000. The ground rent is £65 per annum. The lease terminates on 21st October 2083

You have 58 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £21,900 and £25,200 plus legals.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

What type of premises does your Sawston conveyancing estimates relate to?

Our conveyancing quotes are only appropriate to standard residential premises in England & Wales. If you have any different needs for example industrial or agricultural land or commercial conveyancing in Sawston you should contact us to consider this further .