Do the Building Society Association intend to launch a online directory to list solicitors on the Melton Mowbray Building Society conveyancing panel for example in Kent?

We would not expect to be advised of any plans on the part of the BSA to develop such a register.

A colleague advised me that in buying a property in Kent there could be a number of restrictions affecting the ability to carry out external changes to the property. Is this right?

There are anumerous of properties in Kent which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to perform external changes. Part of the conveyancing in Kent should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.

Is it the case that all Kent CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors are on the Co-operative conveyancing panel?

A selection of lenders now use CQS as the starting point for Panel approval such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS accreditation however is no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the Council of Mortgage Lenders have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitors wishing to join their approved list of conveyancing solicitors.

We had appointed conveyancers based in Kent on the Principality solicitor approved list. They are now charging me an additional fee for dealing with the Principality mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by Principality?

Provided it is contained in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your lawyer can charge a fee for this. The fee is not dictated by Principality but by your Kent solicitor. Some firms on the Principality panel will charge ’dealing with mortgage’ fee and others do not.

I have been on the look out for a flat up to £245,000 and found one round the corner in Kent I like with amenity areas and station in the vicinity, however it's only got 51 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Kent suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?

Should you need a mortgage that many years will likely be an issue. Reduce the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you can ask them to start the process of the extension and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor concerning this matter.

We are four weeks into a leasehold purchase having been recommend to a firm by the estate agent to handle our conveyancing in Kent. I am am starting to be frustrated with the level of service. Can you you assist me in finding new lawyers?

A solicitor would need to be really bad in order to consider diss instructing them. Has the mortgage been generated? In the event that it has you need to make them aware of the replacement conveyancer and get the offer are issued to the new lawyers. The solicitor ideally should be on the mortgage company panel to avoid added fees and complications. So that should be your starting point. The search tool should help you find a lender approved lawyer for your conveyancing in Kent

I am attracted to a couple of maisonettes in Kent which have in the region of 50 years unexpired on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Kent. The lease is a legal document that entitles you to use the property for a period of time. As the lease gets shorter the marketability of the lease reduces and results in it becoming more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is generally wise to increase the term of the lease. Sometimes it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease because mortgage companies may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease extension can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area.

I invested in buying a studio flat in Kent, conveyancing having been completed in 1995. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Kent with over 90 years remaining are worth £195,000. The ground rent is £45 levied per year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2088

With just 63 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £16,200 and £18,600 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is 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 the figures 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. Please do not move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.