I am progressing with the sale of my maisonette in Normanton and the EA has just text me to advise that the purchasers are switching law firm. The reason given is that the mortgage company will only deal with solicitors on their approved list. On what basis would a major lender only deal with specific lawyers rather the firm that they want to appoint for their conveyancing in Normanton ?

Mortgage companies have always had an approved set of law firms they are willing to work with, but in recent years big names such as Nationwide, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for decades.

Banks blame a rise in fraud as the reason for the pruning – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Some do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The buyers are not going to have any impact on this.

As someone not used to conveyancing in Normanton what’s the number one tip you can give me concerning the legal transfer of property in Normanton

Not many law firms shout this from the rooftops but conveyancing in Normanton and elsewhere in England and Wales is an adversarial process. Put another way, when it comes to conveyancing there exists plenty of room for conflict between you and other parties involved in the transaction. For instance, the vendor, estate agent and on occasion the bank. Selecting a law firm for your conveyancing in Normanton is a critical decision as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the ONLY party in the legal process whose interest is to look after your legal interests and to protect you.

On occasion a potential adversary will try and persuade you that you should follow their advice. For instance, the estate agent may claim to be assisting by claiming that your lawyer is dragging his heels. Or your financial adviser may advise you to do take action that is against your conveyancers guidance. You should always trust your lawyer above all other parties when it comes to the legal transfer of property.

I note that there are debates on Chancel Insurance on online forums. Do I need this when purchasing a house in Normanton? or I am told that there is historic law that could mean that homeowners residing in a parish church boundary will be compelled to pay for repairs towards the chancel in proximity to the church. Is this relevant for conveyancing in Normanton?

Unless a previous purchase of the property completed after 12 October 2013 you may take it that lawyers carrying out conveyancing in Normanton to remain recommending a chancel search and or chancel repair liability policy.

It has been 2 months since my purchase conveyancing in Normanton completed. I have checked the Land Registry website which shows that I paid £150,000 when infact I paid £215,000. Why the discrepancy?

The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the residence from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.

I work for a long established estate agent office in Normanton where we have witnessed a number of leasehold sales jeopardised due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Normanton conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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.

I bought a split level flat in Normanton, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Corresponding properties in Normanton with over 90 years remaining are worth £191,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £55 levied per year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2079

With only 54 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £32,300 and £37,400 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.