I am one month into the sale of my maisonette in South Norwood and the EA has just telephoned to say that the buyers are swapping law firm. The excuse is that the mortgage company will only deal with property lawyers on their approved list. Why would a leading lender only deal with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to select for their conveyancing in South Norwood ?

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

Banks attribute this action to a rise in fraud as the reason for the reduction – criteria have been tightened 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 are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The purchasers are not going to have any impact on this.

My husband and I are refinancing our apartment in South Norwood with Coventry BS. We have a son approaching twenty who lives with us. Our solicitor requested us to identify anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who lives in the flat. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the property is repossessed. I have a couple of concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Coventry BS conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we remortgaged 4 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 Coventry BS 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 Coventry BS. This is solely used to protect Coventry BS 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 Coventry BS 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.

My partner and I are intent on selling our property in South Norwood and according to the buyers it appears that there is a risk of it being constructed on contaminated land. Any local conveyancer would know that there is no such problem. It does beg the question why the buyers used a factory type conveyancing outfit as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in South Norwood. Having lived in South Norwood for three years we know that this is a non issue. Should we contact our local Authority to get clarification need.

It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing firm currently acting for you. Are they able to advise? You should enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same sickness)

Planning to exchange soon on a leasehold property in South Norwood. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they report fully tomorrow. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in South Norwood should include some of the following:

Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the (you), superior lessor, freeholder The landlord’s rights to access the flat. You should be made aware that your landlord has rights of access as well as be informed how much notice must be provided. Defining your rights in respect of common areas in the block.By way of example, does the lease provide for a right of way over a path or hallways? It needs to be made clear to you if the lease permits you to change or improve aspects of the premises- you must be made aware as to whether any restrictions applies to all alterations or limited to structural alteration, and whether permission is required Whether the lease restricts you from renting out the property, or having a home office for business

I have tried to negotiate informally with with my landlord for a lease extension without success. Can a leaseholder make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a South Norwood conveyancing firm to act on my behalf?

Most certainly. We are happy to put you in touch with a South Norwood conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a South Norwood property is Flats 55, 67 & 70 Melbourne Court Anerley Road in July 2013. The tribunal calculated that the premium for the extended lease at £48,366.00 for at 55, and £88,329.00 for ats 67 and 70 combined. This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 26.38 years.

I yesterday become aware that one of the partners of the firm acting on the purchase conveyancing in South Norwood is an aunty of the vendor. Is this allowed?

As long as there is no conflict of interest this should be fine. Where you are obtaining mortgage finance then the mortgage company may have a say as many mortgage companies have specific requirements on this. For example for Clydesdale Bank as of 27/10/2024, the requirements read as follows :