My fiance and I wish to acquire a newly converted flat in Monmouthshire with a residential mortgage from The Royal Bank of Scotland.We use our Monmouthshire conveyancing solicitor but The Royal Bank of Scotland advised that he's not listed on their "panel". It seems we are left with little choice but to instruct a The Royal Bank of Scotland panel lawyer or retain our preferred solicitor and fork out for a The Royal Bank of Scotland panel lawyer to represent them. We feel as though this is unjust; is there anything we can do?

No, not really. The home loan issued to you is subject to its various provisions, one of which will be that conveyancers will be on the The Royal Bank of Scotland approved list. Until recently, most banks had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for The Royal Bank of Scotland

A relative advised me that where I am buying in Monmouthshire I should carry out a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?

This is a search is occasionally included in the estimate for your Monmouthshire conveyancing searches. It is not a small document of more than thirty pages, listing and setting out significant information about Monmouthshire around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Monmouthshire Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the type of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime statistics, Monmouthshire Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information regarding Monmouthshire.

I used Action Conveyancing a few years ago for my conveyancing in Monmouthshire. Now, I need my documents but cannot find the solicitor. What do I do?

Do call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Monmouthshire of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously instructed, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

How does conveyancing in Monmouthshire differ for newly converted properties?

Most buyers of new build property in Monmouthshire approach us having been asked by the developer to exchange contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is constructed. This is because new home sellers in Monmouthshire tend to purchase the land, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancers as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are accustomed to new build conveyancing in Monmouthshire or who has acted in the same development.

I work for a reputable estate agent office in Monmouthshire where we have witnessed a few flat sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received contradictory information from local Monmouthshire conveyancing firms. Please can you confirm whether the seller of a flat can start the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

An alternative approach is 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.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Monmouthshire - Examples of Questions you should consider before Purchasing

Does the lease have more than 80 years left? Make sure you investigate if the the lease contains any unreasonable restrictions in the lease. For instance it is very common in Monmouthshire leases that pets are not permitted in in a block in Monmouthshire. If you like the propertyin Monmouthshire but your cat can’t make the move with you then you have a very hard compromise.