My partner and I are planning to acquire a property in Parson Cross and are in fact using a Parson Cross conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our property lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Skipton Building Society have this morning contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Parson Cross lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
If you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' solicitors 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 Accreditation Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your mortgage company 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 are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Parson Cross solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
I am told that my conveyancing solicitors will need to check that the building insurance for my purchase of a house in Parson Cross. My lender is Virgin
Virgin have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook. As of 27/5/2025, the requirements read as follows :
My wife and I are purchasing a apartment in Parson Cross. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a conveyancer? On completion day we have to send our life savings into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our monies?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
Is it the case that all Parson Cross solicitor practices on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel are regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the Kent Reliance approved list of solicitors they would need to be regulated by the SRA. Some banks do permit licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such organisation would be regulated by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
I am due to exchange contracts on my house. I had a double glazing fitted in July 2006, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My purchaser’s lender, Leeds Building Society are being difficult. The Parson Cross solicitor who is on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel is happy to accept ‘lack of building regulation’ insurance but Leeds Building Society are requiring a building regulation certificate. Why do Leeds Building Society have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?
It is probably the case that Leeds Building Society have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Leeds Building Society may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.
It has been three months since my purchase conveyancing in Parson Cross took place. I have checked the Land Registry website which shows that I paid £200,000 when infact I paid £215,000. Why the discrepancy?
The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the asset from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.
I am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in Parson Cross where we see a few leasehold sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Parson Cross conveyancing solicitors. Could you confirm whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the buyer?
As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.
Alternatively, it may be possible to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.
I bought a 1 bedroom flat in Parson Cross, conveyancing having been completed in 2007. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar flats in Parson Cross with a long lease are worth £201,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease ends on 21st October 2089
With 64 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £14,300 and £16,400 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.
The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.
How up-to-date is your database of lawyers on the mortgage company conveyancing panel in Parson Cross? Do the banks send you an updated list?
Parson Cross firms and firms carrying out conveyancing in Parson Cross themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the bank conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from the bank directly.