What happens if my lawyer’s firm is suspended from the Nationwide Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Stansted?

First, this is a very rare occurrence. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit for a fee.

My aunt informed me that in purchasing a property in Stansted there could be a number of restrictions prohibiting external changes to a property. Is this right?

We are aware of a number of properties in Stansted which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to external changes. Part of the conveyancing in Stansted should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.

Can I be sure that the Stansted conveyancing solicitor on the Bank of Ireland panel is any good?

When it comes to conveyancing in Stansted obtaining recommendations is a sensible start. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one advertising the lowest fees. We would always advocate that you speak with the lawyer carrying out your conveyancing.

I recently had an offer accepted on an apartment in Stansted. My financial adviser suggested a conveyancer. I paid an upfront payment of £175. A couple of days later, the conveyancer 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.

Hoping to buy a property located in Stansted and I am already nervous. I couldn't find anything specific about Stansted. Conveyancing will be needed in due course but do you know about the Stansted area? or perhaps some other tips you can share?

Rather than looking online forget looking online you should go and have a look at Stansted. In the meantime here are some basic statistics that we found

My husband and I are one month into a freehold purchase having been recommend to solicitors by the local agent to execute conveyancing in Stansted. I am am extremely dissatisfied with the level of service. Could you you assist me in finding new conveyancers?

A solicitor would need to be really bad in order to consider replacing them. Has your mortgage been generated? In the event that it has you need to inform them of the new contact details and get the loan are re-issued. Your new solicitor ideally should be on the mortgage company approved list to avoid escalating charges and delays. That should be your starting point. Our find a solicitor tool can help you find a lender approved conveyancer for your conveyancing in Stansted

Back In 2000, I bought a leasehold house in Stansted. Conveyancing and Britannia mortgage went though with no issue. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Stansted who acted for me is not around. Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Stansted conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I acquired a 2 bed flat in Stansted, conveyancing was carried out in 1996. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent properties in Stansted with over 90 years remaining are worth £211,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 charged once a year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2094

With only 68 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as legals.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.