I had intended to instruct a property lawyer in Brighstone for our house move. Our broker has since advised us that our bank Barclays won't deal with them. Why is this not regarded as unduly restrictive?

Lenders normally imposes restrictions either the type or the amount of conveyancing solicitors on their panel. A common example of such criteria being that a law practice must not be a sole practitioner. In addition to restricting the type of firm, some have decided to limit the number of firms they use to act for them. Be aware that Barclays have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any member of Barclays Conveyancer Panel. Mortgage fraud was a primary driver in the reduction of conveyancing panels since 2008 even though there remains differing opinions concerning the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Figures from the Land Registry indicate that hundreds of law firms, including some in or near Brighstone only conduct a couple conveyances a year.

I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Aldermore. I assume I don't need a Brighstone property lawyer on the Aldermore panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?

If you have finished paying off your Aldermore mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Aldermore mortgage from the register. Aldermore, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:

1. but are not moving to another property
2. where Aldermore has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
3. Aldermore has instructed the Land Registry to do so

I currently have a mortgage with Skipton for my property in Brighstone. Conveyancing was finalised 12 months ago. If I am intending to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform Skipton?

You must advise Skipton in advance of letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Skipton’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Skipton will allow you to rent 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 Skipton directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Skipton conveyancing panel solicitor.

I am due to exchange contracts on my flat. I had a double glazing fitted in April 2007, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's mortgage company, Skipton are being difficult. The Brighstone solicitor who is on the Skipton conveyancing panel is saying indemnity insurance will be fine but Skipton are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do Skipton have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?

It is probably the case that Skipton have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Skipton 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.

Should my solicitor be raising questions about flooding as part of the conveyancing in Brighstone.

Flooding is a growing risk for conveyancers conducting conveyancing in Brighstone. Plenty of people will buy a house in Brighstone, fully aware that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, aside from the physical damage, where a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, suitable insurance cover, or sell the property. Steps can be carried out during the course of a property purchase to forewarn the buyer.

Conveyancers are not best placed to give advice on flood risk, however there are a various checks that can be undertaken by the buyer or on a buyer’s behalf which should give them a better understanding of the risks in Brighstone. The conventional set of completed inquiry forms supplied to a purchaser’s lawyer (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) incorporates a standard inquiry of the vendor to determine if the property has suffered from flooding. In the event that the property has been flooded in past and is not revealed by the seller, then a buyer may bring a compensation claim as a result of such an inaccurate answer. The buyer’s conveyancers may also commission an enviro report. This will indicate whether there is any known flood risk. If so, further inquiries will need to be conducted.

I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I have offered on a fortnight ago in what should have been a quick, no chain conveyancing. Brighstone is the location of the property. Is there any guidance you can impart?

Flying freeholds in Brighstone are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Brighstone you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds thoroughly. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Brighstone 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 property.

Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Brighstone. Before diving in I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and 99.9% are in Brighstone - 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.

Brighstone Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

Is the freehold reversion owned jointly by the tenants? How long is the Lease? The best form of lease structure is a share of the freehold. In this scenario the leaseholders benefit from control and notwithstanding that a managing agent is frequently retained if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent acts for the leaseholders themselves.