My wife and I are buying a property in Ironbridge. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a solicitor? At some point we have to deposit funds into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our deposit?

Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.

We expect to receive a AIP from this week so we know how much we could potentially offer as otherwise we only have online calculators to go by (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do recommend any Ironbridge solicitors on the conveyancing panel, or is it better to find our own lawyer?

You will need to appoint Ironbridge solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and through the process.

It is unclear whether my lender obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have telephoned my Ironbridge bank branch on numerous occasions and was told it does not impact the mortgage offer and they will lend. My Ironbridge conveyancing solicitor - who is on the lender conveyancing panel- telephoned to say that they will not lend in accordance with their UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook minimum lease term requirements. I simply don't know who is right.

As long as the is on the lender panel, they must comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook provisions for the bank. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the mortgage company will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the lender to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.

I am selling our house in Ironbridge and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a possibility that the property was constructed on contaminated land. Any high street Ironbridge lawyer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers used an internet conveyancing practice as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Ironbridge. We have lived in Ironbridge for 5 years we know that this is a non issue. Should we get in touch with our local Authority to seek confirmation that there is no issue.

It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing lawyer already. What do they say? You must check with your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same ailment)

I opted to have a survey done on a property in Ironbridge in advance of appointing conveyancers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold overhang to the house. My surveyor has said that some lenders will refuse to grant a mortgage on such a home.

It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different instructions from Nationwide. If you e-mail us we can investigate further with the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are accustomed to dealing with flying freeholds in Ironbridge. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

I'm converting the mortgage on my current property to a buy to let loan with and intend to use the remaining equity towards a second house. The location we are interested in is Ironbridge. Will your solicitors be able to act for the two mortgage companies and tie in the conveyances?

Make use of our search tool on this page to be sure that the conveyancers are approved by both mortgage companies. Assuming that they are your conveyancer should be able to connect the two conveyancing matters but you should have a chat with you lawyer and make apparent your expectations and needs.

I’m about to sell my 2 bed flat in Ironbridge. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed, but I have recently had a yearly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

It best that you clear the service charge as you normally would because all rents and service invoices should be apportioned on completion, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I am the registered owner of a basement flat in Ironbridge, conveyancing was carried out in 1995. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Ironbridge with over 90 years remaining are worth £165,000. The ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease ceases on 21st October 50

You have 50 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £36,100 and £41,800 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be considered and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.