I was told today by my mortgage broker that my Vauxhall the law firm I have appointed is not on the lender Conveyancing panel. How can I check?

The best course of action for you to take is to call your Vauxhall lawyer directly. You lawyer should advise you of the situation. Where they are not on the panel they may be able to suggest a Vauxhall conveyancing firm that is on the conveyancing panel for your mortgage company.

My wife and I own a terraced Edwardian house in Vauxhall. Conveyancing lawyer acted for me and Aldermore. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and I saw a couple of entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold with the matching address. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?

You should assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Vauxhall and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they buy they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with lenders. You can also check the position with the conveyancing lawyer who completed the work.

Just had an offer accepted on a new build flat in Vauxhall. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build conveyancing.

Here are examples of a few leasehold new build enquiries that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Vauxhall

The Vendor must covenant to keep unoccupied units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. Will the freehold then be transferred for a nominal consideration (not exceeding £100) to the Management Company? There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants. If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier?

I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £195,000 and found one near me in Vauxhall I like with open areas and station in the vicinity, the downside is that it only has 61 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Vauxhall suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a short lease?

Should you need a home loan the shortness of the lease will be a potential deal breaker. Discount the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current owner has owned the premises for at least twenty four months you could ask them to start the process of the extension and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.

My uncle has recommend that I appoint his conveyancers in Vauxhall. Should I choose my own conveyancer?

No doubt the best way to choose a conveyancing practitioner is to get referrals from friends or relatives who have used the conveyancer that you are are thinking of instructing.