I have given 8 weeks notice to my existing landlord and must be out of my let out flat in Victoria Park by the end of next month. Conveyancing on my purchase is progressing. How realistic is it to complete in 4 weeks as don't want to have to move into short term accommodation?

Generally one should not serve notice on a rental unless exchange of contracts has taken place. Assuming that you have not already done so, contact to your conveyancer and request that they cajole the sellers lawyers, try to get a realistic time scale from them that everyone will aim towards

Please explain the implications if my lawyer’s firm is suspended from the Barclays Solicitor panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Victoria Park?

The first thing to point out is that, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit at a cost.

We are buying a house and the solicitor has mentioned Chancel Repair to which the property could be liable given it’s proximity to the area of such a church. He has suggested insurance. Is this really required for conveyancing in Victoria Park

Unless a previous acquisition of the property took place post 12 October 2013 you may take it that lawyers carrying out conveyancing in Victoria Park to continue to propose a a chancel search and or chancel repair liability policy.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up during conveyancing in Victoria Park?

Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Victoria Park. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

I have just started marketing my basement apartment in Victoria Park. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed, however I have recently had a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the maintenance contribution as normal because all ground rent and maintenance invoices will be allotted as part of the financial calculations for completion monies, so you will be reimbursed by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

Victoria Park Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Sample of Questions you should ask before buying

Make sure you enquire if the the lease includes any onerous restrictions in the lease. For example plenty of leases prohibit pets being allowed in certain buildings in Victoria Park. If you like the apartmentin Victoria Park but your cat is not allowed to make the move with you then you will be presented with a hard decision. Many Victoria Park leasehold apartments will be liable to pay a service charge for the upkeep of the building set on behalf of the management company. Should you acquire the flat you will have to pay this charge, normally in instalments throughout the year. This could differ from two or three hundred pounds to thousands of pounds for large purpose-built buildings. There will also be a rentcharge to be met annual, ordinarily this is not a significant figure, say about £25-£75 but you need to enquire as occasionally it could be many hundreds of pounds. Does the lease include onerous restrictions?