My wife and I are hoping to purchase a home in Patcham and have instructed a Patcham conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our property lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with a view to exchanging next week. TSB have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Patcham solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?

Where you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Patcham lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.

My Solicitor in Patcham is not listed on the Accord Mortgages Ltd Approved Panel. Is it possible for me to use my family solicitor notwithstanding that they are excluded from the Accord Mortgages Ltd list of approved lawyers?

The limited options available to you here include:

1. Complete the purchase with your preferred Patcham lawyers but Accord Mortgages Ltd will need to use a conveyancer on their list of acceptable firms. This will inevitably rack up the total legal charges and result in delays.
2. Choose a new lawyer to to deal with the conveyancing, not forgetting to check they are on the Accord Mortgages Ltd panel

Due to the advice of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Patcham prior to appointing solicitors. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold aspect to the property. My surveyor has said that some banks will not issue a loan on such a house.

It depends who your proposed lender is. Santander has different instructions for example to Nationwide. Should you wish to telephone us we can check with the relevant bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Patcham. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

What does commercial conveyancing in Patcham cover?

Patcham conveyancing for business premises incorporates a wide range of services, provided by regulated solicitors, relating to business property. By way of example, this type of conveyancing can cover the sale or purchase of freehold business premises or, more usually, the transfer of existing leases or the drafting of new leasing arrangements. Commercial conveyancing solicitors can also offer advice on the sale of business assets, commercial loans and the termination of tenancies.

Last August I purchased a leasehold property in Patcham. Am I liable to pay service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

Leasehold Conveyancing in Patcham - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

What is the name of the managing agents? How much is the maintenance charge and ground rent on the apartment? This information is important as a) areas can cause problems in the building as the communal areas may start to deteriorate where repairs remain unpaid b) if the leasehold owners have an issue with the managing agents you will want to know about it