I had intended to instruct a property lawyer in Luton for our house move. Our broker informed us that our mortgage company won't deal with them. Why is this not regarded as unfair competition?

Banks tend to restrict either the category or the number of conveyancing practices on their panel. A common example of such restriction(s) being that a firm must not be a sole practitioner. In addition to restricting the profile of firm, some have reduced the amount of solicitor practices they use to act for them. You should note that have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any member of Conveyancer Panel. Mortgage fraud was a primary driver in the reduction of conveyancing panels since 2008 even though there are differing opinions concerning the level of solicitor engagement in some of that fraud. Data from the Land Registry indicate that thousands of law firms, including some in or near Luton only perform one or two conveyances a year.

We are getting the release of further monies on our home loan from as we intend to carry out a loft conversion to our home in Luton. Do we need to select a local Luton solicitor on the conveyancing panel to handle the legals?

don't usually require a member of their conveyancing panel to deal with such a matter. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the list.

I have a mortgage with for my property in Luton. Conveyancing has been completed months ago. In the event that I decide to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform ?

You must advise prior to renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of ’s mortgage conditions. It may be that will permit you to let out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a conveyancing panel lawyer.

I've read lots of house buying guides, I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Luton solicitor - who is on the conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?

will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. Your will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by your Luton postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with , you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Luton.

About to purchase a new build flat in Luton. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build legal work.

Set out below is a sample of a few leasehold new build questions that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Luton

Please confirm the Lease plans are architect prepared. There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants. Please supply a car parking plan. 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. Where there is an Undertaking being granted there is the risk of forfeiture of the Headlease subject to relief if one or more of the Underlessees are willing to accept the original Head Lessee’s obligations as otherwise relief will be denied to the Underlessees. The only alternatives are the Head Lessor agreeing not to forfeit the Headlease or the Head Lessee guaranteeing to the Underlessees that it will not be in breach of the Headlease.

I have been recommended by a few selling agents in Luton to locate a conveyancer on your site. Is there a financial incentive for Estate Agents to market your lawyers ahead of alternative conveyancing organisations?

We don’t offer any referral fee for pointing buyers and sellers in our direction. We found it would be just too difficult a fee because a client could think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I receiving any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.

I own a leasehold house in Luton. Conveyancing and mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Luton who acted for me is not around. What should I do?

First contact HMLR to make sure that this person is in fact the new freeholder. You do not need to incur the fees of a Luton conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Luton - Sample of Questions you should ask Prior to buying

Please note if it is no more than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the flat. Check with your bank that they are happy with residual term of the lease. Leases with fewer than 80 years remaining means that you will probably have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. For most Lutonlease extensions you would be be obliged to have been the owner of the premises for two years in order to be eligible to exercise a lease extension. This information is important as a) areas can cause problems for the building as the communal areas may start to deteriorate where services remain unpaid b) if the tenants have a dispute with the managing agents you will wish to have all the details How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments?