Our Shadwell solicitor has spotted a difference when comparing the surveyor’s assumptions in the home valuation survey and what is in the conveyancing documents. My lawyer says that he must ensure that the bank is OK with this discrepancy and is still content to lend. Is my conveyancer’s stance correct?

Your must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook provisions which do require that your lawyer disclose any incorrect assumptions in the lender’s valuation report and the legal papers. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.

When does exchange of contracts happen for domestic conveyancing in Shadwell and do I need to be at the conveyancers branch?

If you are in close proximity to our conveyancing solicitors in Shadwell you are invited in to sign the paperwork. However, the lender approved solicitors we recommend offer countrywide coverage for conveyancing and provide as equally comprehensive and professional a job for you when dealing with you electronically. The executing of the property agreement is not the point of no return. Signing on the dotted line simply enables the conveyancer to address the formalities at the appropriate time, which will usually be very shortly after signing. The procedure is nowadays normally dealt with by telephone and can be very rapid, although where a lengthy "chain" is in the mix, since the process requires the relevant party's solicitor (not necessarily a conveyancing solicitor in Shadwell)to be in the office at the appropriate time.

I have a mortgage with for my property in Shadwell. Conveyancing was finalised months ago. Should I wish 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 in advance of letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of ’s mortgage conditions. It may be that will permit you to let 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. You need not do this via a conveyancing panel lawyer.

After months of negotiation I have agreed a price on a house in Shadwell. My financial adviser recommended their conveyancers. I paid an on account payment of £150. A few days later, the called me to say that they were not on the 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 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.

My offer on a property in Shadwell has been agreed to, but there is a chain. The vendors have placed an offer on a flat, however it’s not yet tied up, and have viewings of other apartments in the pipeline. I have instructed a bricks and mortar conveyancing solicitor in Shadwell. What do I do now? When should I get the mortgage application with started?

It is normal to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket prematurely (mortgage application is approx one thousand pounds, then valuation, Shadwell conveyancing search charges, etc). First, you must ensure that your is on the conveyancing panel. As to the subsequent steps this very much depends on the uniqueness of your transaction, motivation for the property and on the state of the market. In a rising market the majority of home buyers would apply for a home loan with and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they ask their to move forward with searches.

I have just appointed agents to market my 2 bed flat in Shadwell. Conveyancing is yet to be initiated, but I have recently had a half-yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

It best that you clear the service charge as you normally would because all ground rent and service charges should be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I bought a leasehold flat in Shadwell, conveyancing was carried out 1995. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable flats in Shadwell with a long lease are worth £165,000. The ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease finishes on 21st October 50

With 50 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £36,100 and £41,800 as well as professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt 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 without first getting professional advice.

My step-son is embarking on her first house purchase, he had his mortgage in principle. After the seller agreed the offer on the house we telephoned the bank to issue the formal offer. We were disappointed to learn that mortgage companies do not accept all , they have to be on a list, is this right?

Mortgage Companies tend to imposes restrictions either the type or the number of conveyancing practices on their panel. A common example of such restriction(s) being that a firm must have two or more partners. In addition to restricting the type of firm, some have decided to limit the number of firms they use to represent them. You should note that lenders have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any Shadwell on their panel. Mortgage fraud was a key driver in the rationalisation of conveyancing panels a few years ago and whilst there are differing views about the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Statistics from the Land Registry reveal that thousands of law firms only carry out one or two conveyances a year. Those supporting conveyancing panel cuts ask why law firms should have the right to be on a Lender panel when clearly, conveyancing is not their speciality. To put it another way; would you want a conveyancing solicitor to represent you if you were charged with a crime? Probably not.