My husband and I are refinancing our flat in Elmers End with Virgin Money. We have a son 18 who lives with us. Our solicitor requested us to identify anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who reside at the property. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the apartment is repossessed. I have a couple of concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Virgin Money conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we bought 5 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 Virgin Money. This is solely used to protect Virgin Money 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 Virgin Money 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.

I have 71 years remaining on my lease and require a lease extension for my flat in Elmers End. Conveyancing solicitors on the Accord Mortgages panel can deal with such extensions right?

Most leasehold conveyancing experts should be able to deal with a lease extension. if you are obtaining a mortgage then your lender may insist that the lease be extended before competition. Accord Mortgages have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook in relation to minimum unexpired lease terms. As of 12/7/2025 the requirements read as follows :

I own a 4 bedroom Edwardian house in Elmers End. Conveyancing lawyer acted for me and HSBC Bank. I did a free Land Registry search last week and I saw a couple of entries: one for freehold, the second leasehold under the matching address. Is it worth asking HSBC Bank to clarify?

You should read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Elmers End and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they buy they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with buyers. You can also question the position with your conveyancing solicitor who completed the work.

Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I have offered on last month in what was supposed to be a simple, no chain conveyancing. Elmers End is where the house is located. Can you offer any assistance?

Flying freeholds in Elmers End are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Elmers End you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds thoroughly. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Elmers End may ascertain that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold property.

My property lawyer in Elmers End is asking me for proof of ID documents asserting that this is part of his retainer as a conveyancer on the bank Solicitor panel. This is news to me - can I refuse?

Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering rules require Elmers End conveyancing solicitors and licensed conveyancers to verify the identity of the person or body they are dealing with before they can accept their conveyancing business. The Client Care letter that you need to sign will no doubt confirm this. Your lawyer is right that the mortgage company also require certain documents to be viewed. If a you refuse to provide ID verification documents, your conveyancer would not be able to accept instructions from you. Your lawyer also has obligations to obtain certain documents in accordance with the bank's UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements