We are intending to buy a 2 bedroom apartment in Sandbanks with a mortgage. We have a Sandbanks lawyer, but the bank says she’s not on their "panel". It appears that we have little option but to instruct one of the bank panel conveyancing practices or retain our Sandbanks conveyancing practitioner and pay for one of their panel lawyers to represent them. This feels very unfair; is there anything we can do?

No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders 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. A further alternative is for your Sandbanks conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

My partner and I swapping mortgage lender for our flat in Sandbanks with Virgin Money. We have a son 19 who lives with us. Our solicitor requested us to identify anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the flat is repossessed. I have two questions (1) Is this document specific to the Virgin Money conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we purchased 3 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?

First, rest assured that your Virgin Money conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Virgin Money. This is solely used to protect Virgin Money if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Virgin Money had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.

What does a local search inform me regarding the property we're buying in Sandbanks?

Sandbanks conveyancing often commences with the ordering local authority searches directly from your local Authority or through a personal search organisations for instance Searchflow The local search plays a central role in most Sandbanks conveyancing purchase; as long as you wish to avoid any nasty surprises after you move into your property. The search will supply data on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the property (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 subject headings.

My father has encouraged me to instruct his lawyers for conveyancing in Sandbanks. Do I follow his advice?

There are no two ways about it it’s preferable to select a conveyancing lawyer is to have referrals from friends or relatives who have actually previously instructed the conveyancer you're contemplating using.

What makes a Sandbanks lease unacceptable for security purposes?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Sandbanks. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain sections are erroneous. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

A provision to repair to or maintain elements of the property Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You may have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. National Westminster Bank, The Mortgage Works, and TSB all have very detailed conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to pull out.

Sandbanks Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Does the lease have more than 80 years remaining? What prohibitions are contained in the Sandbanks Lease? What is the service charge and ground rent on the flat?