We are hoping to buy a newly converted flat in Paignton with a mortgage from Barnsley Building Society.We have a Paignton conveyancing practitioner but Barnsley Building Society informed us his firm is not on their "panel". We have to appoint a Barnsley Building Society panel lawyer or retain our preferred solicitor and pay for one of their panel ones to represent them. This seems very unfair; is there anything we can do?

No, not really. The home loan offered to you contains various provisions, one of which will be that lawyers must be on the Barnsley Building Society approved list. in the past, most mortgage companies had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Barnsley Building Society

I need some expedited conveyancing in Paignton as I have a deadline to exchange contracts in less than one month. Thankfully I do not require a mortgage. Can I decline from having conveyancing searches to save fees and time?

If.Given you are are a mortgage free buyer you have the choice not to have searches carried out although no law firm would advise that you don't. Drawing on years of experience of conveyancing in Paignton the following are instances of issues that can be revealed and adversely affect future saleability: Refused Planning Applications, Outstanding Fees, Outstanding Grants, Railway Schemes,...

My brother has encouraged me to instruct his conveyancing solicitors in Paignton. Should I find my own property lawyer?

No doubt the ideal way to select a conveyancing lawyer is to have feedback from friends or family who have actually previously instructed the solicitor that you are are thinking of instructing.

I’m about to sell my garden apartment in Paignton. Conveyancing has not commenced, but I have just received a quarterly service charge demand – what should I do?

It best that you discharge the invoice as normal as all ground rent and service payments will be apportioned on completion, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I invested in buying a basement flat in Paignton, conveyancing having been completed in 2000. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Similar flats in Paignton with an extended lease are worth £179,000. The ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2082

With 57 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £26,600 and £30,800 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.

We are soon to buying a flat in Paignton. Conveyancing is not yet done but we wish to keep the amount we are are buying for confidential from sites such as Nestoria. How could this be achieved ?

The Land Registry as a matter of law obliged to reveal price paid information on the official title for residential properties countrywide which includes properties in Paignton. The Title Register is an open document, so the Land Registry would be breaching their statutory duty if they did not permit access to the register.

You can make a request of HM Land Registry to hide the price paid data but the answer will be a No.