My lawyer has discovered a a problem with the lease for the flat we are buying in Purley. The seller’s lawyers have offered defective title insurance as a workaround. We are content with insurance and will cover the costs. Our conveyancing practitioner says that he must ensure that the bank is willing to move forward with this solution. Who is the client here, us or the lender?

Notwithstanding that you have a mortgage offer from the lender does not mean to say that the property will meet their conditions for the purposes of a mortgage. Your lawyer has to ensure that the lease has to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. You and the mortgage company are the client. These conveyancing instructions have to be complied with.

I am aiming to move property in October. Will my conveyancing solicitor liaise with the removal company on the completion day. On a separate note, can you put forward a removal company in Purley. Conveyancing lawyer was chosen before I stumbled across this website.

On the afternoon of completion you will need to collect the keys from the property agent but this can only occur when the previous owners conveyancers inform the agent that they acknowledge receipt of the completion payment and the keys can be passed over. You should inform the removal men that they can start moving you in. As a matter of policy we do not recommend a particular removal company but can assist you in finding a conveyancing in Purley or a solicitor that specialises in conveyancing in Purley.

We had chosen solicitors with offices in Purley on the Kent Reliance solicitor panel. They are now charging me a separate amount for handling the Kent Reliance mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by Kent Reliance?

As unfair as it may seem, as long as it’s in their Terms and Conditions or estimate then yes your conveyancing practitioner may charge a fee for this. The charge is not dictated by Kent Reliance but by your Purley conveyancer. Plenty of firms on the Kent Reliance panel will quote an ‘acting for lender’ fee but plenty of firms include it on their overall fee.

I recently had an offer agreed on a house in Purley. My mortgage broker recommended their conveyancers. I paid an on account payment of £150. Shortly after, the lawyer called me to say that they were not on the Barclays conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?

You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Barclays panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.

I am buying my first flat in Purley benefiting from help to buy. The sellers refused to reduce the amount so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The property agent suggested that I not inform my lawyer about the side-deal as it may put at risk my loan with the bank. Is this normal?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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 am looking for a flat up to £305k and identified one near me in Purley I like with a park and station nearby, however it only has 61 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Purley in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a short lease?

If you need a home loan the shortness of the lease may be a potential deal breaker. Reduce the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for at least 2 years you may request that they start the process of the extension and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer about this matter.

As co-executor for the estate of my uncle I am disposing of a house in Monmouth but I am based in Purley. My lawyer (based 200 miles from meneeds me to sign a statutory declaration ahead of completion. Can you recommend a conveyancing practitioner in Purley who can attest and place their company stamp on the document?

strictly speaking you are not likely to need to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Normally any notary public or solicitor will do regardless of whether they are located in Purley