I'm in the process of porting my current homeowner loan to a Buy to Let Birmingham Midshires mortgage. I have been informed by my broker that I require a solicitor for this. I spoke to my former New Covent Garden conveyancing practitioner who dealt with the legals when I first acquired the premises. The fee calculation they've given of £550 has surprised me as I am not require purchase conveyancing - it’s just a bog-standard refinance.

The quote is fractionally on the expensive side. If you are content to expend time comparing charges you may be able to trim some of the cost by as much as £100 plus VAT. That being said, assuming were happy with the legal work the firm provided you maycome to rue opting for an an untested conveyancer. Remember to check that the conveyancer can represent Birmingham Midshires. You can use our search tool to locate a New Covent Garden conveyancing firm on the Birmingham Midshires approved list of lawyers, which can often include conveyancing solicitors in New Covent Garden.

My uncle passed away six months ago and as sole heir and executor I was left the house in New Covent Garden. The house had a relatively small loan remaining of approximately £8000. I want to transfer the title deeds into my name whilst I re-mortgage to UBS, pay off the mortgage. Is this possible?

Given you plan to refinance then UBS will insist on your using a conveyancer on the UBS conveyancing panel. Here is link to the Land Registry online guidance around what to do when a property owner dies. This will help you to understand the registration process behind changing the details re the registered title. in your case it would appear that you are effectively purchasing the property from the estate. Your UBS conveyancing panel solicitor pays the new mortgage money into the estate, the estate pays off the old mortgage, the charge is released and you become the owner and the UBS mortgage is registered as a charge at the Land Registry.

Am I right to be wary about estate agents that I am dealing with are encouraging me to use a national conveyancing firm rather than a High Street New Covent Garden conveyancing firm?

As is the case with lots of service providers, often suggestions from relatives can be extremely useful or valuable. Nevertheless there are numerous players in a conveyancing deal; estate agents, mortgage brokers and banks may recommend lawyers to retain. Sometimes these lawyers might be known to one of the organisations as one of the best in their field, but sometimes there may be a financial incentive behind the endorsement. You have the discretion to select your own conveyancer. You need to be aware that some mortgage providers have an approved list of lawyers you have to use for the mortgage aspect of your transaction.

My father has suggested that I appoint his conveyancers in New Covent Garden. Do I take his recommendation?

Much as we are happy to recommend a New Covent Garden conveyancing lawyer the best way to select a conveyancing solicitor is to have referrals from friends or relatives who have actually experience in using the conveyancer you're are thinking of instructing.

I work for a reputable estate agency in New Covent Garden where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local New Covent Garden conveyancing firms. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

I inherited a ground floor flat in New Covent Garden, conveyancing having been completed February 2009. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Comparable flats in New Covent Garden with a long lease are worth £197,000. The ground rent is £55 yearly. The lease finishes on 21st October 2080

You have 55 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £31,400 and £36,200 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.