My fiance and I are planning to buy a flat in Alexandra Park and are in fact using a Alexandra Park conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our solicitor has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Bank of Ireland have this morning contacted us to advise us that they have now hit a problem as our Alexandra Park lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?

When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Alexandra Park solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.

We had chosen conveyancers with offices in Alexandra Park on the Principality solicitor panel. They have just invoiced me a further charge for dealing with the Principality mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee specified by Principality?

As unfair as it may appear, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your property lawyer may levy a fee for this. This fee is not dictated by Principality but by your Alexandra Park conveyancing practitioner. Plenty of firms on the Principality panel will levy ’dealing with mortgage’ fee but some firms include it on their overall fee.

I'm at the point of looking at houses in Alexandra Park and I am about to put in an offer. Is it advisable to have a lawyer on ‘stand by’? I will be getting a mortgage with Lloyds.

It would be sensible to start your search sooner rather than later. After you have chosen your lawyer and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their contact information on to the estate agent. Given that you are getting a mortgage with Lloyds, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the Lloyds conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.

The formalities of my purchase has taken place for my property in Alexandra Park. Conveyancing was a necessary evil but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. How do I make a complaint?

All lenders have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Team at head office. Ordinarily complaints to a lender are resolved effectively and efficiently. If you feel the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR with full details of your complaint.

How does conveyancing in Alexandra Park differ for newly converted properties?

Most buyers of new build property in Alexandra Park contact us having been asked by the developer to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is built. This is because builders in Alexandra Park tend to acquire the land, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Alexandra Park or who has acted in the same development.

I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £305k and found one near me in Alexandra Park I like with a park and transport links nearby, however it's only got 51 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Alexandra Park in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?

Should you require a home loan that many years will be problematic. Reduce the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the property for at least 2 years you may ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor regarding this matter.

What are your top tips when it comes to choosing a Alexandra Park conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

When appointing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Alexandra Park conveyancing firm) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you talk with several firms including non Alexandra Park conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions could be helpful:

What are the costs for lease extension work?

Having spent months of negotiations we cannot agree with our landlord on how much the lease extension should cost for our flat in Alexandra Park. Does the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal have jurisdiction to calculate the appropriate figures?

Absolutely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Alexandra Park conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Alexandra Park flat is Flat B 10 Grove Avenue in October 2013. Following a vesting order Clerkenwell and Shoreditch County Court 3rd July 2013 The tribunal determines that the premium payable for the lease extension was £36,215.00 This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 65.21 years.