The Bradley Stoke conveyancing firm that I recently instructed on my purchase in Bradley Stoke have suddenly closed. I only went with them because I had to have a lawyer on the Barclays conveyancing panel and my preferred Bradley Stoke lawyer was not. I paid them £170 on account. What should be my next steps?

Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then inform them immediately so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to the problems encountered. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Barclays conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money, it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new solicitors should be in a position to assist.

When it comes to lenders such as Leeds Building Society, do Bradley Stoke conveyancers have to pay a yearly amount to be on the conveyancing panel?

We are unaware of any mortgage company fees to register on their panel, although some do levy an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.

Completion of my purchase has taken place for my property in Bradley Stoke. Conveyancing was of an acceptable standard but I would like to complain about the lender. How do I make a complaint?

Most lenders have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Services Department at head office. We understand that complaints to a lender are sorted out effectively and efficiently. If you feel the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service with full details of your complaint.

After shopping around on the internet I have found a Bradley Stoke lawyer having checked that they are on the Santander conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?

Santander will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Santander will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Bradley Stoke surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up as part of conveyancing in Bradley Stoke?

Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Bradley Stoke. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

I am purchasing my first flat in Bradley Stoke with a mortgage from Accord Mortgages Ltd. The developers refused to reduce the amount so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The sale representative advised me not inform my solicitor about the side-deal as it would impact my mortgage with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Bradley Stoke. Conveyancing and Bank of Scotland mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Bradley Stoke who acted for me is not around. What should I do?

First contact HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a Bradley Stoke conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I own a basement flat in Bradley Stoke, conveyancing having been completed in 2000. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Equivalent properties in Bradley Stoke with over 90 years remaining are worth £197,000. The ground rent is £55 charged once a year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2076

With only 55 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £31,400 and £36,200 as well as legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should 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. Please do not move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.