I am buying a maisonette in Norbury. My Solicitor is not listed on the mortgage company approved list. Is it possible for me to retain my Norbury conveyancing solicitor notwithstanding that they are excluded from the bank panel of approved conveyancing solicitors?

You have numerous alternatives open to you here

• Complete the deal with your preferred Norbury conveyancing practitioner but your bank will no doubt retain a conveyancer on their conveyancing panel. This will result in additional cost and probable frustration.
• Choose a new property lawyer to act in the purchase, ensuring that they are on the bank conveyancing panel.
• Convince your conveyancing practitioner to do everything possible to get accepted on the mortgage company panel of solicitors

I am assisting my step-mother sell her property in Norbury. Does the solicitor arrange the EPC or should I organise this?

After the abolition of Home Packs, energy assessments became a mandatory part of selling a property. An energy assessment must be to hand in advance of the property being advertised. This is not a task that lawyers normally organise. Where you are using a Norbury conveyancing solicitor they may be willing to arrange energy assessments due to their contacts with long established local providers

Are all Norbury Conveyancing Quality Solicitors on the Coventry BS conveyancing list of approved solicitors?

A selection of lenders now make use of CQS as the starting point for Panel approval such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS membership however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. Nevertheless,the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for firms wishing to join their panels.

Is there a list of Virgin Money panel conveyancers in Norbury on the Building Society Association’s Website?

Unfortunately not yet. There is no such directory service on the Council of Mortgage Lenders or Building Society Association sites. Very few mortgage companies make their panel listings visible over the internet. If you are in need of a Norbury solicitor on the Virgin Money please use our tool.

Just acquired a detached house in Norbury , What is the estimated time for the Land Registry to record my title? My Norbury conveyancing solicitor has been painfully slow, so I want to check the land registry aspects are concluded.

There is nothing unique about conveyancing in Norbury registration formalities. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timeframes can adjust subject to who lodges the application, whether there are errors and if the Land registry must send notices to any other persons or bodies. Currently approximately 80% of submission are fully addressed in less than three weeks but some can be subject to extensive delays. Registration is effected once the purchaser has moved in to the premises therefore 'speed' is not always an essential issue yet if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your solicitor should communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for an expedited registration.

I opted to have a survey completed on a house in Norbury in advance of instructing solicitors. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold element to the house. Our surveyor has said that some banks tend not grant a loan on this type of premises.

It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different requirements from Birmingham Midshires. If you e-mail us we can look into this further via the relevant lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Norbury. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Norbury especially if they regularly deal with such properties in Norbury.

I am employed by a long established estate agency in Norbury where we see a few leasehold sales put at risk due to short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Norbury conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the buyer?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

We have reached the end of our tether in negotiating a lease extension in Norbury. Can this matter be resolved via the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal?

Most definitely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Norbury conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Norbury residence is Flat 12, Newlands Court Streatham Common North in May 2012. the decision of the Tribunal was that the premium payable by the Applicants to the Respondent for the new lease of the Premises be £70,140. This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 23.25 years.