My partner and I changing mortgage lender for our maisonette in Bewdley with Aldermore. We have a son 18 who lives at home. Our solicitor requested us to identify anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who reside at the property. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the property is forfeited by the lender. I have a couple of questions (1) Is this form unique to the Aldermore conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we remortgaged 4 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?

First, rest assured that your Aldermore conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing 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 Aldermore. This is solely used to protect Aldermore 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 Aldermore 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.

My husband and I are buying a 2 bedroom apartment in Bewdley with a loan from Clydesdale.We like our Bewdley conveyancing lawyer but Clydesdale informed us her practice is not listed on their approved list of firms. we are left little option but to use a Clydesdale panel lawyer or retain our local solicitor and fork out for a Clydesdale panel lawyer to act for them. We feel as though this is unjust; is there anything we can do?

Unfortunately,no. The loan issued to you is subject to its various provisions, one of which will be that conveyancers needs to be on the Clydesdale approved list. Until recently, most mortgage companies 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 Clydesdale

Should my solicitor be raising enquiries regarding flooding as part of the conveyancing in Bewdley.

Flooding is a growing risk for solicitors dealing with homes in Bewdley. There are those who buy a property in Bewdley, completely aware that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, leaving to one side the physical damage, if a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, adequate insurance cover, or dispose of the premises. Steps can be carried out as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the buyer.

Lawyers are not qualified to offer advice on flood risk, but there are a various searches that can be carried out by the buyer or by their conveyancers which should figure out the risks in Bewdley. The standard completed inquiry forms given to a purchaser’s conveyancer (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) includes a usual question of the vendor to discover if the property has ever been flooded. In the event that the residence has been flooded in past which is not disclosed by the owner, then a purchaser could commence a compensation claim resulting from an incorrect answer. A purchaser’s conveyancers may also order an environmental search. This will indicate if there is a recorded flood risk. If so, further inquiries should be initiated.

I am purchasing my first flat in Bewdley benefiting from help to buy. The builders refused to reduce the amount so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The estate agent suggested that I not disclose to my conveyancer about this extras as it could put at risk my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.

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'm remortgaging my primary home to a BTL loan with Halifax and I will use the rest of the raised equity as a deposit on further house. The area we are interested in is Bewdley. Will your conveyancers be able to act for both sets of lenders and link together the two deals?

Make use of our search tool on this site to check that the lawyers are on the relevant lender panels. Having checked that they are the solicitor should be able to connect the two deals but you should talk with you lawyer and communicate your desired outcome and requirements.