We wanted to use a conveyancing solicitor in Shooter's Hill for our home move. Our broker has since advised us that our bank National Westminster Bank won't deal with them. Why is this not regarded as unfair competition?

Mortgage Companies in the main restrict either the type or the volume of conveyancing firms on their panel. Typical examples of such criteria being that a law practice must have two or more partners. In addition to restricting the type of firm, a few lenders have limited the number of solicitor practices they permit to act for them. You should note that National Westminster Bank have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any member of National Westminster Bank Conveyancer Panel. Mortgage fraud was a primary driver in the reduction of conveyancing panels since 2008 even though there are mixed opinions concerning the extent of solicitor engagement in some of that fraud. Data from the Land Registry reveal that hundreds of law firms, including some in or near Shooter's Hill only perform very few conveyances per annum.

I have justfound out that Stirling Law have closed. They carried out my conveyancing in Shooter's Hill for a purchase of a leasehold flat 12 months ago. How can I check that my home is not still registered in the name of the former proprietor?

The easiest method to see if the property is registered to you, you can make a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Shooter's Hill conveyancing specialists.

I decided to have a survey completed on a property in Shooter's Hill before instructing solicitors. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold element to the house. My surveyor advised that some mortgage companies will refuse to grant a loan on a flying freehold premises.

It varies from the lender to lender. Santander has different requirements for example to Nationwide. Should you wish to call us we can check 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 Shooter's Hill. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Shooter's Hill to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of flats in Shooter's Hill which have approximately 50 years left on the lease term. Will this present a problem?

There are no two ways about it. A leasehold apartment in Shooter's Hill is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to its expiry date, the more it reduces the marketability of the property. For most purchasers and lenders, leases with less than 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a property with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Shooter's Hill conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. More often than not it is possible to negotiate informally with the freeholder to extend the lease. They may agree to a smaller lump sum and an increase in the ground rent, but to shorter extension terms in return. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

Having spent months of dialogue we are unable to agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Shooter's Hill. Can we issue an application to the Residential Property Tribunal Service?

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a Shooter's Hill conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Shooter's Hill residence is 103a Footscray Road in January 2014. The tribunal determines that the premium payable for the extended lease should be £34,500 according to the expert witness valuation calculation This case related to 1 flat.

A mortgage offer from a lender for the refinancing of my 4 bedroom flat is due by the end of next week. Could you recommend a low cost remortgage conveyancing law firm in Shooter's Hill ?

You are on the wrong site if you are in need of the cheapest conveyancing solicitors in Shooter's Hill. We can offer you excellent value conveyancing but we do not work with the cheapest lawyers. Avoid the trap of appointing brokers offering £99 conveyancing in Shooter's Hill.In your best case scenario, in opting for cheap conveyancing, you will end up with what you pay for and at worst you will end up paying a lot in extras and still not receive the service you were hoping for.