I am selling my maisonette in Stepney and the estate agent has just telephoned to advise that the purchasers are switching solicitor. The reason given is that the mortgage company will only deal with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. Why would a big named mortgage company only engage with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to select for their conveyancing in Stepney ?

Lenders have always had panels of law firms they are content to work with, but in the past few years big names such as Lloyds Banking Group, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for more than 15 years.

Banks point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the pruning – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to keep an eye on. No lender will say 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 are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your purchasers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.

About to purchase a new build flat in Stepney. 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 is a sample of a few leasehold new build questions that you should expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Stepney

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. The Lease must contain a provision on behalf of the Vendor to pay the service charges in respect of unoccupied units in order to ensure that all services can be provided. Will the freehold then be transferred for a nominal consideration (not exceeding £100) to the Management Company? 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.

I opted to have a survey completed on a house in Stepney before retaining solicitors. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold aspect to the property. The surveyor has said that some mortgage companies will not give a mortgage on this type of home.

It depends who your proposed lender is. Bank of Scotland has different instructions from Halifax. Should you wish to call us we can look into this further with the relevant mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Stepney. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

I have recently realised that I have Fifty years left on my flat in Stepney. I now wish to extend my lease but my freeholder is absent. What options are available to me?

On the basis that you meet the appropriate requirements, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can submit an application to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be granted an extra 90 years by the Court. You will be obliged to prove that you have made all reasonable attempts to locate the landlord. In some cases a specialist may be helpful to conduct investigations and to produce an expert document to be used as evidence that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a conveyancer in relation to investigating the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court covering Stepney.

I inherited a 1st floor flat in Stepney, conveyancing was carried out 3 years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Similar flats in Stepney with an extended lease are worth £165,000. The ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease expires on 21st October 50

You have 50 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £36,100 and £41,800 plus legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

One month into buying a house in Stepney. Conveyancing solicitor has told us the property is "Leasehold". Will this likely impact the marketability of the property?

Stepney conveyancing does not in most situations involve leasehold houses. The main factor here is the length of lease and the ground rent. If there are over a hundred years remaining with a nominal rent, it's almost the same as freehold, so it’s unlikely to impact the saleability too much.

At the other end of the spectrum, if it's, say, 50 years it is bound to have a material impact on the saleability, and probably wouldn't be mortgageable. The length of lease and ground rent will be specified in the lease which should be made available to your .