My husband and I are planning to purchase a house in Newburn and are in fact using a Newburn conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our solicitor has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Nottingham Building Society have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Newburn lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?

Where you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You don't have to instruct a firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Newburn solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.

Is it necessary during the course of the conveyancing process to have a meeting at the offices of the solicitor to execute the mortgage deed? If so, I will appoint a lawyer who conducts conveyancing in Newburn so that I can attend their offices when needed.

Whereas this was necessary ten years ago, almost all mortgage companies no longer require their conveyancing panel lawyer to witness the mortgagors signature. It will still be necessary for you to supply ID documents and there are still distinct advantages to choosing a locally based practitioner, in your situation a conveyancing solicitor in Newburn.

Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I put an offer in two weeks back in what was supposed to be a straight forward, chain free conveyancing. Newburn is where the house is located. Can you offer any assistance?

Flying freeholds in Newburn are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Newburn you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds very carefully. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Newburn may decide that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.

Is it simple use the search app to locate a conveyancing lawyer in Newburn on the authorised to act for my mortgage?

First pick a bank such as Accord Mortgages Ltd, Barnsley Building Society or Britannia then specify your preferred area e.g. Newburn. Conveyancing firms in Newburn and further afield should be shown.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden apartment in Newburn. Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon, but I have recently received a yearly maintenance charge demand – what should I do?

It best that you clear the service charge as normal because all ground rent and maintenance charges should be apportioned as part of the financial calculations for completion monies, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I bought a studio flat in Newburn, conveyancing having been completed June 2009. How much will my lease extension cost? Equivalent properties in Newburn with over 90 years remaining are worth £211,000. The ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2093

You have 67 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to span between £10,500 and £12,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.