There a several benefits of local information when buying or selling in Eltham. By building contacts with local authorities, your Solicitor can deliver Conveyancing with fewer delays, and keep you better informed. They are also highly familiar with areas needing special consideration across Eltham.

We have assisted home movers throughout Eltham, including Conveyancing in SE28.

Issues to consider when your lawyer is not on your Lender's panel

Panels of solicitors are maintained by mortgage lenders in order to undertake legal work on mortgaged properties. Recently, lenders have changed the criteria for the firms which they will accept on their panels. They have also reduced the size of their panels, removing firms which do not carry out much Conveyancing work or which they consider to have proved unsatisfactory in the past. If your lender does not accept your chosen solicitor, you must make a decision as to how to proceed; you could either obtain a mortgage from another lender, or instruct another firm of conveyancer who are on the panel. Generally, it is cheaper to have the same firm act both for you and your lender, but you could also choose to persist with both your first choice of lender and solicitor, and pay for a lawyer selected by the lender to carry out the relevant legal work. Be aware of the following, if you choose to remain with your first choice of law firm:

• You must now pay the lender's costs in addition to your own
• You will not get any priority from the lender's solicitors, as they will have many other cases underway, and you are unable contact these solicitors directly

Disadvantaged Areas in Eltham

Designated areas as 'disadvantaged areas' may qualify for relief from stamp duty. In England and Wales, they are based on electoral wards. Eltham residential property under £150,000 within one of these areas is exempt from stamp duty. If it is suspected that a property is located in a disadvantaged area, further enquiries are required to be made to the local council or authority. A postcode search is worth undertaking to determine whether a residence under the £150k threshold is in a Disadvantaged area. This relief is not generally available on commercial property, but some relief may be available for 'mixed use' premises such as a shop with a flat above.

Searches

If your are looking to buy a property in Eltham your solicitor will apply to the council for Local Authority Searches (Con 29 enquiries, LLC1 and Con29 Part 2). The Local Authority for Eltham is Royal Borough of Greenwich, The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, London, SE18 6HQ. Tel: 020 8854 8893