Is the fact that my solicitor in Alton is not listed on my mortgage company's solicitor panel that there is a problem with the standard of the firm’s conveyancing?
That is most likely a wrong assumption to make. There are all sorts of perfectly plausible explanations. Just recently a report by the solicitors regulator indicated 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The top 5 reasons are as follows: (1) lack of transactions (2) the solicitor is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. Should you be concerned you should contact the Alton conveyancing practice and enquire why they are no longer on the approved list for your mortgage company.
The owners have very assertive vendors who has suggested a lock out contract with a payment two thousand pounds. Are such agreements sensible?
There are two primary downsides with entering into any lock out agreement (occasionally known as a shut-out contract) is that it can distract from making progress with the conveyancing work, so in the absence of it needing limited or no negotiation then it could transpire to be a hindrance. It is not particularly popular by Alton conveyancing practitioners for this reason. The other main negative is the extent of the remedies available - an aggrieved purchaser is very unlikely to obtain an injunctive ruling by a court to bar the seller selling to another buyer, so the only remedy open via the contract will be the recovery of abortive costs and, in restricted situations, the additional payment of penalties.
I have 7378 less than 75 years unexpired on my lease and require a lease extension for my apartment in Alton. Conveyancing solicitors on the The Mortgage Works panel can deal with such extensions right?
Most leasehold conveyancing experts should be able to deal with a lease extension. if you are securing a mortgage then your lender may insist that the lease be extended before competition. The Mortgage Works have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook in relation to minimum unexpired lease terms. As of 20/10/2025 the requirements read as follows :
Where the unexpired lease term is different to that recorded on the mortgage offer, the following clarifies if we need to be informed:
Second hand property:
- If the unexpired lease term on the offer is 85 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 85 years
- if the unexpired lease term on the offer is less than 85 years – advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported
- For equity share applications - advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer
New build property:
- If the unexpired lease term stated on the offer is 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house) or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house)
- For equity share applications - always advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer
Lease terms such as ground rent and event fees must be reasonable at all times during the term of the lease and adhere to our requirements below. If you’re unsure as to whether the terms of a lease are unreasonable or onerous, please refer the details to us in plain English for Valuer consideration. If the potentially onerous terms are in relation to the ground rent please include the current ground rent figure per annum, how often it will be reviewed and the price structure it will be reviewed against. See the guidance below.
SECOND HAND PROPERTIES
Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (Will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 70 years
- Less than 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term
- Ground Rent greater than 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent doubles less than every 20 years (e.g. doubles every 5, 10 or 15 years) - acceptable if doubles every 20 years or more
- Ground Rent is compounded RPI
- Ground Rent review period less than or equal to 5 years
Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Unexpired lease term is 70 to 85 years
- Ground Rent greater than 0.1% and less than or equal to 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to any indices greater than RPI
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building*
- Ground Rent review period is greater than 5 and less than 10 years
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1.0% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything that appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary
Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than 85 years
- Ground Rent less than or equal to 0.1% of the property value
- Ground Rent review period greater than or equal to 10 years
- Ground Rent escalation less than or equal to RPI
NEW BUILD PROPERTIES (includes office conversions)
Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 125 years on a new build flat or less than 250 years on a new build house
- Any lease which is subject to a ground rent (or annual rent) being charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis
- Any lease which is subject to a ground rent (or annual rent) being reviewed and altered on any review basis or methodology
Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1.0% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything else appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary
Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than or equal to 125 years on a new build flat or greater than or equal to 250 years on a new build house
- A lease subject to a peppercorn ground rent (annual rent) charges
For the avoidance of doubt, any new build properties completed but not sold pre 30 June 2022 will only be acceptable if the lease conforms to the above guidance
* Where the Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building, please provide the following:
- How is the value of the block/unit currently calculated and if the assessment relates to the block(s), how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned per property?
- The current valuation and Ground Rent for each unit
- What is the mechanism for future valuations of the block and how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned?
- What is the right of appeal? And is this a documented process within the lease?
- Who bears the cost of the valuation (and appeal) process?
- Confirmation the review period is not less than twenty years
LEASE EXTENSIONS
We require all lease extensions to be completed under the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 and to meet the above criteria as a minimum. Where you become aware that it does not meet these requirements, please refer to the Issuing Office
Please ensure that all lender enquiries are submitted (with full documentation/requirements) at least 2 weeks prior to exchange to allow sufficient time for review and decisioning.
is it true that all Alton conveyancing solicitors on the Santander conveyancing panel are overseen by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the Santander conveyancing panel they would need to be overseen by the SRA. Many mortgage companies do permit licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such firms would be governed by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
I currently have a mortgage with HSBC for my property in Alton. Conveyancing has been completed some time ago. In the event that I decide to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform HSBC?
You must advise HSBC in advance of renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of HSBC’s mortgage conditions. It may be that HSBC 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 HSBC directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a HSBC conveyancing panel solicitor.
After months of negotiation I have agreed a price on an apartment in Alton. My mortgage broker pressured me to appoint their solicitor. I paid an advanced payment of £200. A few days later, the solicitor contacted me to say that they were not on the Principality conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Principality panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.
Do I need to be concerned about estate agents that I am dealing with are encouraging me to use a national conveyancing firm rather than a High Street Alton conveyancing practice?
As with many professional services, often referrals from connections can be most helpful. But there are many players in a conveyancing transaction; estate agents, mortgage brokers and lenders might all put forward conveyancers to retain. On occasion the solicitors might be known to one of the organisations as being good in their field, but sometimes there may be a commercial relationship behind the recommendation. You are at liberty to select your preferred lawyer. However, bear in mind that some banks operate an approved list of conveyancers you are obliged to use for the lender aspect of your transaction.
I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Alton. Before diving in I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.
If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Alton - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title. For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.
I invested in buying a 1st floor flat in Alton, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2005. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding flats in Alton with a long lease are worth £180,000. The ground rent is £65 yearly. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2083
With only 58 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £22,800 and £26,400 as well as legals.
The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs without more detailed investigations. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be considered 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 without first getting professional advice.