I am progressing with the sale of my flat in Acocks Green and the EA has just telephoned to say that the purchasers are changing their law firm. The reason given is that the bank will only engage with solicitors on their approved list. Why would a major lender only deal with specific law firms rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Acocks Green ?

Lenders have always had panels of law firms that can act for them, but in the last few years big names such as Lloyds Banking Group, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for many years.

Lending institutions point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. Banks tend not to reveal how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The purchasers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.

AssumingI was to purchase a straightforward housein Acocks Green mortgage fee and dispense with a survey and no local authority searches how much would I expect to have to pay for conveyancing in Acocks Green?

Any savings you would achieve would be isolated to the disbursement for searches. A solicitor is obliged to do the vast majority of work - money laundering, correspond with the sellers conveyancer, SDLT return, register the property etc. A marginal saving might be made by not having to register a mortgage however it won't be meaningful.

I acquired my home on 9 November and my personal details are still not registered. Should I be concerned? My conveyancing solicitor in Acocks Green advises it should be dealt with in a couple of weeks. Are transfers in Acocks Green uniquely lengthy to register?

There is nothing unique when it comes to conveyancing in Acocks Green registration formalities. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timescales can vary subject to the party submitting the application, whether it is in order and if the Land registry must send notices to any other parties. As of today approximately 80% of submission are fully dealt with within two weeks but some can be subject to protracted hold-ups. Registration takes place once the new owner is living at the premises thus an expedited registration is not always primary concern but where there is a degree of urgency associated with the registration then you or your lawyers must communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for an expedited registration.

Due to the encouragement of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a house in Acocks Green before instructing conveyancers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. Our surveyor has said that some mortgage companies tend refuse to issue a loan on this type of premises.

It varies from the lender to lender. Lloyds has different instructions for example to Halifax. Should you wish to telephone us we can check via the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Acocks Green. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Acocks Green especially if they are familiar with such properties in Acocks Green.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Acocks Green what are the most common lease problems?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Acocks Green. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.

A defective lease will likely cause issues when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Accord Mortgages Ltd, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and Godiva Mortgages Ltd all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to pull out.

I own a ground floor flat in Acocks Green, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2000. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Similar properties in Acocks Green with over 90 years remaining are worth £165,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease finishes on 21st October 2103

With only 77 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £7,600 and £8,800 plus legals.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns 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 before seeking the advice of a professional.