Much to our surprise we have been advised by our mortgage adviser that my Ladbroke Grove property lawyer is not on the lender Solicitor panel. How can I check?

The sensible course of action for you to take is to contact your Ladbroke Grove conveyancer. It is reasonable to expect your lawyer to advise you of the situation. If they are not on the panel they may recommend you to a Ladbroke Grove conveyancing practice that is on the conveyancing panel for your lender.

I am helping my niece sell her property in Ladbroke Grove. Does the conveyancer arrange an energy assessment or do I organise this?

Following the abolition of Home Packs, energy performance certificates remained a compulsory component of selling a property. An energy performance certificate must be commissioned before the property is marketed. It is not something that law firms ordinarily arrange. Where you are using a Ladbroke Grove conveyancing solicitor they might be willing to arrange energy performance certificates given their relationships with reputable Ladbroke Grove providers

We have agreed to purchase a house in Ladbroke Grove. One unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. RBS have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?

As your lender is RBS your lawyer must comply with the conveyancing requirements outlined in Section 2 of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for RBS. The CML Handbook includes minimum requirements for solar panel roof-space leases, and lawyers are required to report to RBS where a lease fails to comply with these requirements. The conditions relate to the installation of panels on properties in England and Wales and is not restricted to Ladbroke Grove.

I'm in the throws of looking at houses in Ladbroke Grove and I am about to put in an offer. Is it too early to have a solicitor in place? I intend to finance via a mortgage with Santander.

You should start requesting conveyancing estimates from solicitors ASAP. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their details on to the EA. Given that you are seeking a mortgage with Santander, make sure you remember to check that your lawyer is on the Santander conveyancing panel.

I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £195,000 and found one round the corner in Ladbroke Grove I like with open areas and transport links in the vicinity, however it only has 52 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Ladbroke Grove suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?

Should you need a mortgage the shortness of the lease will be a potential deal breaker. Discount the offer by the expected lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current owner has owned the property for a minimum of twenty four months you may ask them to start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.

I am looking for a conveyancing lawyer in Ladbroke Grove for my house move. Is there any facility to review a firm’s complaints history with the profession’s regulator?

Members of the public may review presented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) decisions arising from investigations from 2008 onwards. Go to Check a solicitor's record. For details about the period before 1 January 2008, or to check a firm's history, call 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and 09.30 - 18.00 Tuesday. International callers, dial +44 (0)121 329 6800. The SRA could monitor telephone calls for training requirements.

Harry (my fiance) and I may need to let out our Ladbroke Grove basement flat temporarily due to a career opportunity. We instructed a Ladbroke Grove conveyancing firm in 2001 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your last Ladbroke Grove conveyancing solicitor is not around you can review your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the apartment. The rule is that if the lease is silent, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you are obliged to obtain consent from your landlord or other appropriate person in advance of subletting. This means that you cannot sublet without first obtaining permission. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably refused ore delayed. If your lease does not allow you to sublet you should ask your landlord if they are willing to waive this restriction.

I am the proprietor of a ground-floor 1950’s flat in Ladbroke Grove. In the absence of agreement between myself and the landlord, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal determine the premium payable for the purchase of the freehold?

Where there is a absentee freeholder or if there is dispute about what the lease extension should cost, under the relevant legislation you can apply to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) to determine the premium.

An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Ladbroke Grove property is Flat 1 57 Oxford Gardens in January 2014. the Tribunal decided that the premium to be paidfor a new lease is £61,650.00. This case affected 1 flat. The number of years remaining on the existing lease(s) was 60 years.