I'm the single beneficiary of my late grandmother’s will and I have everything in my name now, including the house in Deal. The Deal property was put into my name in October. I plan to dispose of the property. I understand that there is a Mortgage Lenders 6 month 'rule', which means that my proprietorship could be treated the same way as if I'd bought the house in October. Do I have to wait 6 months to sell?

The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook obliges solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you may be caught by that. How practical a view banks take of it, depend on the bank as this provision primarily exists to pick up on subsales or the wholesaling and assigning of properties.

Is it the case that all Deal solicitor practices on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel are regulated by the SRA?

As solicitors, in order to be on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel they would need to be regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. Some banks do list licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such practice would be governed by the CLC.

We had instructed solicitors with offices in Deal on the Santander solicitor panel. They are now charging me a supplemental sum for dealing with the Santander mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee set by Santander?

Unfortunately, as long as it is in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your conveyancing practitioner can charge a fee for this. This charge is not dictated by Santander but by your Deal conveyancer. Plenty of firms on the Santander panel will levy ’dealing with mortgage’ fee but plenty of firms include it on their overall fee.

I opted to have a survey done on a house in Deal prior to instructing lawyers. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold overhang to the house. The surveyor has said that some banks tend refuse to grant a mortgage on this type of house.

It depends who your proposed lender is. Bank of Scotland has different instructions from Birmingham Midshires. Should you wish to telephone us we can check with the appropriate bank. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can help as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Deal. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

How can the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 affect my business property in Deal and how can your lawyers assist?

The 1954 Act gives protection to commercial tenants, granting the dueness to apply to court for a renewal lease and remain in occupation at the end of the lease term. There are limited grounds that a landlord can refrain from granting a lease renewal and the rules are involved. We are happy to direct you to commercial conveyancing solicitors who use the act to your advantage and help with commercial conveyancing in Deal

We're new on the property ladder - agreed a price, but the estate agent informed us that the seller will only move forward if we appoint the agent's preferred solicitors as they are insisting on a ‘quick sale’. My instinct tells me that we should use a local solicitor who is accustomed to conveyancing in Deal

It is unlikely the owners are behind this. Should the vendor desire ‘a quick sale', alienating a serious purchaser is not the way to achieve this. Speak to the owners direct and make the point that (a)you are genuine buyers (b)you are excited to move forward, with finances in place © you have nothing to sell (d) you wish to move quickly (e)but you intend to instruct your own,trusted Deal conveyancing lawyers - not the ones that will earn the estate agent a kickback or meet his conveyancing figures demanded by senior management.

We own a leasehold flat in Deal. Conveyancing was finalised in five years ago. I have been told that I mustn’t let the the remaining lease term to get too low. Is this right?

Deal residential long term leases are for a set term - normally just under one hundred years when they are first granted. However a significant flats in Deal were built or converted 30 or more years ago and so these leases now have less than eighty years left to run. That may seem like plenty of time but Banks, Building Societies and other mortgage companies tend to require leases to have at least 75 years unexpired to adequate security. This means that when you come to sell the property you will need a lease extension if you are nearing eighty years. To maximise your property value you should be considering whether or not to extend your lease long before you come to sell it. There are also advantages to taking action before the lease hits eighty years as when the lease is below eighty years the premium to be paid to extend starts to get a lot more expensive.