I am not well enough to travel far from Blakedown. I would like to know the logic why all Blakedown solicitors aren't automatically on all lender panels?

Pre- 2008 most mortgage companies demonstrated an approach to risk which differs from the current day. The Financial Services Authority in 2010 conducted a thematic review into property fraud which concluded: know the conveyancers on your panel. Accordingly, mortgage companies have since soughtmore information from law firms about their operations and the staff employed by them and set certain criteria such as completing a minimum volume of transactions. Many law practices have been excluded from lender panels even though they had an exemplary track record, no complaints and zero claims and didn't just 'dabble' in conveyancing. Such firms were never going to satisfy the criteria of amount of transactions the lenders set.

There is lots of information on this site concerning conveyancing in Blakedown but can you isolate your top tip for selecting the right conveyancer in Blakedown

We would encourage you not to base your choice on the lowest Blakedown conveyancing costs illustration. 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 go into the conveyancing with your eyes wide open.

I currently have a mortgage with Co-operative for my property in Blakedown. Conveyancing has been completed months ago. Should I wish 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 Co-operative?

Your original mortgage agreement with Co-operative will provide that you need their approval prior to letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Co-operative’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Co-operative will permit you to let 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 Co-operative directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Co-operative conveyancing panel solicitor.

I am due to exchange contracts on my house. I had a double glazing fitted in October 2006, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's lender, Principality are being a right pain. The Blakedown solicitor who is on the Principality conveyancing panel is recommending indemnity insurance as a solution but Principality are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do Principality have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?

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

My colleague recommended that if I am purchasing in Blakedown I should ask my conveyancer to execute a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. What does it cover?

A search of this type is sometimes quoted for as part of the standard Blakedown conveyancing searches. It is a large document of about 40 pages, listing and detailing significant information about Blakedown around the property and the people living there. It incorporates an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the Blakedown Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime details, Blakedown Education with maps and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful information about Blakedown.

We're first time buyers - agreed a price, but the property agent told us that the vendor will only proceed if we use their preferred conveyancers as they are insisting on an ‘expedited deal’. My instinct tells me that we should use a local conveyancer with experience of conveyancing in Blakedown

We suspect that the owner is unaware of this requirement. Should the vendor desire ‘a quick sale', taking such a hostile approach to a genuine purchaser is counter productive. Contact the sellers directly and explain that (a)you are keen to buy (b)you are ready to go, with mortgage lined up © you do not need to sell (d) you wish to move quickly (e)however you will continue to use your own,trusted Blakedown conveyancing lawyers - not the ones that will provide the estate agent a referral fee or achieve conveyancing figures demanded by HQ.

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Blakedown. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Blakedown - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.

I inherited a garden flat in Blakedown, conveyancing formalities finalised in 1997. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Blakedown with an extended lease are worth £195,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2089

With 63 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £16,200 and £18,600 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first getting professional advice.