My wife and I swapping mortgage lender for our penthouse in Temple Fortune with RBS. We have a son approaching twenty who lives at home. Our solicitor requested us to identify any adults 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 apartment is repossessed. I have a couple of questions (1) Is this form unique to the RBS conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we bought 3 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?

On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong 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 RBS. This is solely used to protect RBS 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 RBS 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.

The deeds to our house can not be found. The conveyancers who dealt with the conveyancing in Temple Fortune 10 years ago have long since closed. Will I be able to sell the house?

Gone are the days when you need to hold title deeds to establish that you own the land or property, as the Land Registry have everything they need in a digital format.

I decided to have a survey done on a property in Temple Fortune prior to instructing conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. My surveyor advised that some lenders will not issue a mortgage on a flying freehold premises.

It depends who your proposed lender is. Santander has different instructions from Halifax. If you e-mail us we can check with the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Temple Fortune. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Temple Fortune especially if they are accustomed to such properties in Temple Fortune.

Am I right to be suspicious that estate agents that I am dealing with are recommending a factory type conveyancing firm rather than a High Street Temple Fortune conveyancing practice?

As is the case with many professional services, often input from relatives can be most helpful. But there are many people with a vested interest in a conveyancing transaction; estate agents, mortgage brokers and mortgage companies might all suggest conveyancers to instruct. Sometimes these conveyancers might be known to one of the organisations as experts in their field, but occasionally there behind the scenes commercial relationship behind the endorsement. You have the discretion to appoint your own lawyer. You need to be aware that the majority of lenders operate an approved list of law firms you must use for the lender aspect of your house move.

My wife and I have hit a brick wall in trying to reach an agreement for a lease extension in Temple Fortune. Can the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal adjudicate on premiums?

Most definitely. We can put you in touch with a Temple Fortune conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Temple Fortune property is Flat 2 2 Netherfield Road in April 2010. The Tribunale held that premium payable for a 90 year extension to the existing Lease should be £7,705. This case was in relation to 1 flat. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 76 years.

What makes a Temple Fortune lease defective?

Leasehold conveyancing in Temple Fortune is not unique. Most leases are drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the premises Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.

You could have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Santander, Barnsley Building Society, and Bank of Ireland all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to provide security, forcing the purchaser to pull out.