We have very brash vendors who has insisted on a preliminary contract with a deposit two thousand pounds. Is it wise to enter into such agreements?

Lock out agreements are contracts binding a home owner and purchaser granting the buyer the sole right to the sale of the property within a prescribed time frame. Essentially, an exclusivity agreement is a contract stating that you will be issued with a contract at a later date which is the contract for the actual sale. It is generally utilised for buyer assurance though in many situations, the seller may stand to benefit from such agreements as well. There are many pros and cons to using an agreement but you should to check with your conveyancer but beware that it may end up costing you extra in conveyancing fees. In light of this these contracts are rare in relation to conveyancing in Canterbury.

We see that you have a search directory identifying solicitors on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel. Do firms pay you a referral fee if I instruct them for our conveyancing in Canterbury?

We are a listing service only for law firms wishing to communicate if they are on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel or other lender panels. We do not charge referral fees to any conveyancer that you subsequently appoint for your conveyancing in Canterbury.

I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £235,500 and found one close by in Canterbury I like with open areas and railway links in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 61 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Canterbury for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a short lease?

If you require a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be an issue. Discount the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the existing owner has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you may request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor concerning this matter.

Is it simple use the search app to select a conveyancing solicitor in Canterbury on the approved list for my mortgage?

1st pick a mortgage company such as Yorkshire Building Society, Chelsea Building Society or TSB then type in your preferred area such as Canterbury. Conveyancing practices in Canterbury and beyond will then be listed.

We are buying a three bedroom housein Canterbury with a mortgage from a mortgage company. We like our conveyancer in Canterbury yet our lender inform us now that he's not on their "panel". It seems we have little choice but to instruct from the our mortgage company panel solicitors or stay with our Canterbury conveyancer and pay for one of their panel ones to represent our mortgage company. This seems very unfair; is there anything we can do?

Unfortunately,no. The lender home loan issued is subject to conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank's conveyancing panel. Until recently, most mortgage companies had open panels, including many conveyancing solicitors in Canterbury : a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your solicitors to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for your lender.