I am under pressure from the executor of a property in Barry to complete within four weeks. What can I do to speed up matters?

First, If you are under pressure to sign contracts it is advisable to make sure that your lawyer is familiar with the location as they will make use of local connections and knowledge. It is possible that they would have conducted previoushouses in the same road. You would be best advised to use a Barry conveyancing lawyer. Second, check that the lawyer is on the member panel. It is understood that 18% of Barry conveyancing deals are frustrated or derailed after finding out that a buyer’s solicitor was not on their banks member panel. In many cases this discovery resulted in the legal transfer of property being delayed by an average of three weeks. It is claimed that this issue affects in the region of one hundred thousand home sales every year. Most Barry conveyancing firms can not represent certain banks so do check at the outset.

It is 10 years ago since I bought my house in Barry. Conveyancing solicitors have recently been instructed on the sale but I am unable to track down the title deeds. Is this a problem?

Don’t worry too much. First there is a chance that the deeds will be kept by the lender or they could be archived with the conveyancers who handled your purchase. Secondly the likelihood is that the title will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you are the registered owner by your conveyancing lawyers procuring up to date copy of the land registers. The vast majority of conveyancing in Barry involves registered property but in the rare situation where your home is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is not insurmountable.

We are close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our property in Barry and according to the buyers it appears that there is a risk of it being built on contaminated land. Any local conveyancer would know this is not the case. For the life of me I don't know why the buyers instructed a factory type conveyancing outfit as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Barry. We have lived in Barry for three years we know that this is a non issue. Is it a good idea to contact our local Authority to obtain confirmation need.

It would appear that you have a conveyancing solicitor already. Are they able to advise? You must enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same sickness)

I am purchasing a new build house in Barry with a mortgage from Norwich and Peterborough Building Society. The builders refused to budge the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of fixtures and fittings instead. The estate agent advised me not inform my conveyancer about this side-deal as it will affect my mortgage with the bank. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold issue on a property I put an offer in last month in what was supposed to be a quick, chain free conveyancing. Barry is the location of the property. Is there any advice you can give?

Flying freeholds in Barry are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Barry you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Barry may decide that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.