My partner and I are planning to purchase a home in Herne Hill and have appointed a Herne Hill conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our property lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with a view to exchanging next week. have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Herne Hill conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?

If you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for 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 lender 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 lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Herne Hill solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.

Does a directory service exist listing panel solicitors in Herne Hill on the Building Society Association’s Website?

No. There is no such facility on the CML or Building Society Association websites. A small selection of lenders make their panel listings viewable on the web. Where you are in need of a Herne Hill on the please make the most of our tool.

We have a mortgage agreed in principle with . Herne Hill conveyancing lawyers were appointed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from ?

Some lenders take longer than others. Have completed the valuation? Have you informed as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the conveyancing panel? Sometimes it can take as long as six weeks for a mortgage offer to be issued.

We have agreed to purchase a house in Herne Hill. A rare aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Solicitors conducting should look into this right? Will my lender be concerned?

Given that your lender is your lawyer must check the formal instructions outlined in Section two of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for . The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook stipulates minimum conditions for solar panel roof-space leases, and are required to report to where a lease fails to meet these provisions. The conditions relate to the installation of panels on properties nationwide and is not isolated to Herne Hill.

We are purchasing a house and the solicitor has raised the issue of Chancel Repair to which the house could be liable given it’s proximity to the area of such a church. She has recommended insurance. Is this strictly required for conveyancing in Herne Hill

Unless a prior acquisition of the property took place post 12 October 2013 you may take it that lawyers conducting conveyancing in Herne Hill to remain encouraging a chancel search and or chancel repair liability insurance.

I am buying a new build house in Herne Hill with a loan from . The builders would not budge the price so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The house builders rep told me not reveal to my lawyer about this deal as it would put at risk my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

I acquired a 1st floor flat in Herne Hill, conveyancing was carried out 3 years ago. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Herne Hill with an extended lease are worth £165,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 50

With only 50 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £36,100 and £41,800 plus costs.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure without more detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.