My wife and I swapping mortgage lender for our maisonette in Reigate with Skipton. We have a son 18 who lives at home. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the flat is repossessed. I have two concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Skipton conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we purchased 4 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?

On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Skipton. This is solely used to protect Skipton if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Skipton had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.

If you had a top tip for selecting a conveyancing solicitor in Reigate what would it be?

It would be unwise to be seduced by the cheapest Reigate conveyancing quote. You really do get what you’re paying for when it comes to conveyancing solicitors. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you know exactly what you’ll have to pay in advance.

Forgive me if this question is silly but I am unexperienced as a first time buyer of a garden flat in Reigate. Do I pick up the keys to the property on the completion date from my lawyer? If this is the case, I will use a local conveyancing solicitor in Reigate?

On the day of completion you will not be required to go to the conveyancers office in Reigate. Conveyancing lawyers for you will transfer the completion advance to the vendor’s solicitors, and shortly after the monies have arrived, you will be invited to collect the keys from the property Agents and move into your new home. This tends to happen between 1 and 3pm.

I have decided to exercise my right to buy my property in Reigate off the council. I have a mortgage agreed with Aldermore. Conveyancing is new to me. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should use one. Any advice?

It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with Aldermore, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Aldermore conveyancing panel.

About to purchase a new build flat in Reigate. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build legal work.

Here is a sample of a selection of leasehold new build questions that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Reigate

Where there is an Undertaking being granted there is the risk of forfeiture of the Headlease subject to relief if one or more of the Underlessees are willing to accept the original Head Lessee’s obligations as otherwise relief will be denied to the Underlessees. The only alternatives are the Head Lessor agreeing not to forfeit the Headlease or the Head Lessee guaranteeing to the Underlessees that it will not be in breach of the Headlease. The Vendor must covenant to keep unoccupied units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier? The Lease must contain a provision on behalf of the Vendor to pay the service charges in respect of unoccupied units in order to ensure that all services can be provided.

Am I right to be concerned by brokers that I am dealing with are encouraging me to use a nationwide conveyancing firm as opposed to a High Street Reigate conveyancing practice?

As is the case with lots of professional services, often input from family and friends can be worth their weight in gold. But there are lots of people with a keen interest in a conveyancing deal; estate agents, financial adviser and mortgage companies might all recommend lawyers to choose. Sometimes the conveyancers might be known to one of the organisations as one of the best in their field, but occasionally there behind the scenes commercial relationship behind the endorsement. You are at liberty to appoint your preferred conveyancer. You need to be aware that most banks specify a panel list of lawyers you have to use for the mortgage related work in your conveyancing.

Should I cancel the direct debit for my mortgage with Kent Reliance once a completion date for my sale in Reigate has been set?

No, you should keep paying any mortgage payments to Kent Reliance pending the mortgage being repaid out of the proceeds of sale as part of your Reigate conveyancing.