My husband and I are intending to acquire a 3 bedroom flat in Feltham with a mortgage. We have a Feltham lawyer, however the lender advise he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the lender panel solicitors or continue with our Feltham property lawyer as well as pay for one of their panel lawyers to represent them. This feels very unfair; are we not able to insist that the lender use our Feltham conveyancer ?

Unfortunately,no. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: 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. A further alternative is for your Feltham conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

The deeds to my house are lost. The conveyancers who did the conveyancing in Feltham 4 years ago have long since closed. What are my next steps?

These day there are duplicates made of almost everything, and your solicitor should know exactly where to locate all the suitable documentation so you may purchase or dispose of your property without any difficulty. Where copies are not available, your conveyancer can put in place insurance or indemnities protecting you against future claims on your premises.

How does conveyancing in Feltham differ for newly converted properties?

Most buyers of new build premises in Feltham contact us having been asked by the housebuilder to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is built. This is because builders in Feltham tend to acquire the site, 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 accustomed to new build conveyancing in Feltham or who has acted in the same development.

I am one month into a freehold purchase having been directed to a firm by the selling agent to perform conveyancing in Feltham. I am am very disappointed with the level of service. Can you you assist me in finding new solicitors?

They would need to be very bad in order to consider diss instructing them. Has the loan offer been sent? If so you will need to inform them of the new contact details and have the mortgage documents are re-sent. Your solicitor ideally needs to be on the banks panel to avoid escalating fees and frustration. So that should be your starting point. Our search tool should assist you in finding a lender approved conveyancer for your conveyancing in Feltham

Last October I purchased a leasehold house in Feltham. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to ensure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I am the leaseholder of a first floor flat in Feltham. Given that I can not reach agreement with the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the amount due for a lease extension?

Most definitely. We are happy to put you in touch with a Feltham conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Feltham flat is 147 Redford Close in June 2012. The Tribunal determined the lease extension premium to be at £4,200 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired term was 82.93 years.