There a several benefits to staying informed if you are moving home in Hendon. Fridaysmove-recommended Solicitors maintain close links with relevant local authorities.

The consequences of your solicitor not being on your Mortgage Lender's panel

Mortgage lenders maintain panels of solicitors who they will instruct to carry out legal work on mortgages. At one time, many lenders, especially the large banks, were prepared to instruct any firm of solicitors who asked to be placed on their panel. 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. These options are available to any homebuyer whose solicitor is not on their lender's panel:

• Try to obtain a mortgage from another lender who will instruct your Conveyancing solicitor.
• Instruct another firm of Conveyancing solicitors who are on your lender's panel to handle your Conveyancing.
• Continue with your present Conveyancing solicitor, but accept that a separate firm will also act for the lender, and that you will have to pay their costs in addition.

It is usually cheaper to have the same firm act both for you and your lender, and carry out all the conveyancing work in connection with a purchase and the mortgage. Consider these issues if you are intending to stay with your solicitor rather than opt for your mortgage lender's choice:

• You will have to pay your lender's legal costs
• By being required to send documents to the lender's solicitors, delays will inevitably occur
• You will be unable to contact the lender's firm directly, as they will be acting for the lender rather than you

Does your Hendon purchase qualify for Stamp Duty Relief?

Purchases of property in Hendon 'disadvantaged areas' are eligible for stamp duty. Local government wards or electoral divisions are used to define the boundaries of these. These disadvantaged areas do not always coincide with postcode districts, so the postcode search tool cannot always be relied on. Note that normal rates of duty apply sales above £150,000. That said, for any purchase below £150,000, it is worth making a simple postcode search to find out if a property is in a Disadvantaged area.

Searches

If your are buying a home in Hendon your conveyancer is required to apply to the council for Official Local Authority Searches. The Local Authority for Hendon is London Borough of Barnet Council, North London Business Park (NLBP), Oakleigh Road South, London, N11 1NP. Tel: 020 8359 2000 or out of hours emergencies on: 01925 444 407