I am under pressure from the mortgagee in possession of a property in East Dulwich to complete within four weeks. What can I do to expedite the legal process?

In the event that the seller is applying pressure for your conveyancing it is advisable to make sure that your conveyancer is familiar with the area as they will make use of local connections and knowledge. It is even conceivable that they may have conducted otherhomes in the same street. Therefore consider using a East Dulwich conveyancing lawyer. Second, check that the lawyer is on the lender panel. It is understood that 18% of East Dulwich conveyancing deals are delayed or jeopardised after discovering a purchaser’s solicitor was not on their mortgage lender’s panel. In many cases this discovery resulted in the legal transfer of property being delayed by an average of three weeks. It is believed that this issue impacts in the region of 100,000 home moves annually. Many East Dulwich conveyancing firms can not represent certain lenders so do check as early as possible.

I have been referred to a conveyancing solicitor in East Dulwich. I I would like to check if they are accepted on the Platform Home Loans Ltd conveyancing panel. Could you or the lender confirm if they are on the panel?

You should call the lawyer and ask them if they are on the lender panel. Alternatively you can get in touch with Platform Home Loans Ltd who may be able to help.

Me and my brother own a renovated Georgian property in East Dulwich. Conveyancing solicitor acted for me and Yorkshire Building Society. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and there are two entries: the first freehold, the second leasehold with the exact same address. I thought I was buying a freehold how can I check?

You need to assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in East Dulwich and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with purchasers. You can also question the position with the conveyancing solicitor who conducted the work.

As co-executor for the will of my uncle I am selling a property in Newport but live in East Dulwich. My conveyancer (who is 235 kilometers awayrequires that I sign a statutory declaration prior to completion. Could you suggest a conveyancing solicitor in East Dulwich to witness and place their company stamp on the document?

strictly speaking you are unlikely to need to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily or notary public or qualified solicitor will do regardless of whether they are based in East Dulwich

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in East Dulwich. Conveyancing and TSB mortgage went though with no issue. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing practitioner in East Dulwich who acted for me is not around. What should I do?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a East Dulwich conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I own a first flat in East Dulwich. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum payable for the purchase of the freehold?

Where there is a absentee freeholder or where there is dispute about the premium for a lease extension, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 it is possible to make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to arrive at the amount due.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a East Dulwich residence is Flat 1 40-42 Ewelme Road in August 2012. the Tribunal assessed the premium for the lease extension in the sum of £11,800 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 61.81 years.