I am progressing with the sale of my ground floor flat in Aigburth and the EA has just e-mailed to say that the buyers are swapping solicitor. The reason given is that the lender will only deal with solicitors on their approved list. On what basis would a major mortgage company only work with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to choose to handle their conveyancing in Aigburth ?

Mortgage companies have always had panels of law firms they are content to work with, but in the last few years big names such as Lloyds Banking Group, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for many years.

Mortgage companies blame a rise in fraud as the reason for the reduction – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Some are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your purchasers are unlikely to have any impact on this.

We are purchasing a house and require a conveyancing solicitor in Aigburth who is on the Coventry BS solicitor panel. Can you recommend a local firm?

Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Coventry BS . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in Aigburth.

I need some expedited conveyancing in Aigburth as I am faced with a deadline to complete within 2 weeks. A mortgage is not required. Is it possible to decline from having conveyancing searches to save fees and time?

If.Given you are not obtaining a home loan you have the choice not to do searches although no conveyancer would advise that you don't. Drawing on our experience of conveyancing in Aigburth the following are instances of issues that can crop up and therefore impact market value: Enforcement Actions, Outstanding Charges, Overdue Grants, Road Schemes,...

I have recently realised that I have Sixty One years remaining on my flat in Aigburth. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is absent. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to demonstrate that you or your lawyers have done all that could be expected to find the freeholder. In some cases an enquiry agent would be helpful to conduct investigations and prepare an expert document which can be accepted by the court as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on proving the landlord’s absence and the application to the County Court covering Aigburth.

I purchased a 2 bed flat in Aigburth, conveyancing having been completed in 2000. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable flats in Aigburth with an extended lease are worth £227,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease expires on 21st October 2097

With only 72 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be considered and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

A licensed conveyancer acted on my conveyancing in Aigburth four years ago having archived my registration documents but has since been shut down – What can I do to retreive them?

Title deeds, as such, no longer exist as the majority of homes in Aigburth are archived electronically at Land Registry. Where you need to show evidence of proprietorship or are disposing of or refinancing your property lawyer should obtain up to date copies of the register from the Land Registry in any case.

If you feel there may be other documents or you have any other queries please e-mail your request with details of the transaction and documents you need to filerequest@clc-uk.org. The CLC will let you know what information they have and any additional information they may need before they are in a position to identify and send the documents to you. Following an intervention it may take some time for the CLC to access archived files and documents, but your request will be actioned with reasonable haste.