It is 10 years ago since I purchased my house in Chalk Farm. Conveyancing solicitors have now been retained on the sale but I can't find the title deeds. Is this a problem?

Don’t worry too much. First the deeds may be with the lender or they may be in the possession of the lawyers who acted in your purchase. Secondly the chances are that the land will be recorded at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you own the property by your conveyancing solicitors procuring up to date copy of the land registers. The vast majority of conveyancing in Chalk Farm involves registered property but in the unlikely event that your property is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is not insurmountable.

We hope to to purchase with Melton Mowbray Building Society. I went into a few local companies but am unable to find a Chalk Farm conveyancing firm on the Melton Mowbray Building Society panel. Can you assist?

Please do take advantage of the find a lender approved solicitor tool on this web page. Pick the building society and type Chalk Farm or your location and you will see numerous conveyancers located in Chalk Farm or near you.

We had selected conveyancers based in Chalk Farm on the Yorkshire BS solicitor panel. They have just invoiced me a separate charge for dealing with the Yorkshire BS mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by Yorkshire BS?

Provided it is contained in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your solicitor can levy a fee for this. The fee is not dictated by Yorkshire BS but by your Chalk Farm lawyer. Plenty of firms on the Yorkshire BS panel will charge ’dealing with mortgage’ fee but some firms include it on their overall fee.

I am purchasing a property in Chalk Farm. An unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. HSBC have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?

As your lender is HSBC your lawyer must comply with the formal instructions outlined in Part two of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for HSBC. The CML Handbook stipulates minimum provisions for solar panel roof-space leases, and property lawyers are required to report to HSBC where a lease fails to comply with these conditions. The requirements relate to the installation of panels on properties nationwide and is not limited to Chalk Farm.

Our sealed bid on a detached house in Chalk Farm has been accepted, the owners do nevertheless have an associated purchase. The vendors have offered on a property, however it’s not yet agreed to, and are looking at other apartments booked. I have chosen a nearby conveyancing solicitor in Chalk Farm. What do I do now? At what point do I apply for the mortgage with Leeds Building Society?

It is usual to have anxieties where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur expenses prematurely (mortgage application is in the region of £1k, then survey, Chalk Farm conveyancing search costs, etc). First, you should check that your conveyancer is on the Leeds Building Society approved list. Concerning the next stages this very much dictated by the specifics of your case, desire for the property and on the state of the market. In a hot market the majority of buyers will apply for the mortgage with Leeds Building Society and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they pay their conveyancer to proceed with the conveyancing in Chalk Farm.

How does conveyancing in Chalk Farm differ for newly converted properties?

Most buyers of new build residence in Chalk Farm come to us having been asked by the housebuilder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is finished. This is because developers in Chalk Farm tend to acquire the real estate, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are accustomed to new build conveyancing in Chalk Farm or who has acted in the same development.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Chalk Farm conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Chalk Farm conveyancing firm) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We recommend that you talk with two or three firms including non Chalk Farm conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions could be useful:

Can they put you in touch with clients in Chalk Farm who can give a testimonial? If they are not ALEP accredited then why not?

Having spent years of negotiations we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Chalk Farm. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

if there is a absentee landlord or if there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the relevant statutes you can apply to the LVT to assess the price.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Chalk Farm premises is Flat 2 27 Mackeson Road in December 2012. The Tribunal assessed the value of the lease extension premium at £35,435 and rounded the figure to £35,500 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 64.77 years.