AssumingI were to buy a freehold housein Church Village mortgage fee and dispense with a survey and no conveyancing searches how much would I expect to have to pay for conveyancing in Church Village?

The sole saving you would make on is the costs for searches. A solicitor is obliged to do the vast majority of work - money laundering, correspond with your sellers lawyer, stamp duty return, register the ownership etc. You might save a bit for them not having to register a charge but it won't be significant.

My wife and I are buying a property in Church Village. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a solicitor? On the day of competition we will need to put funds into their account. What protection do we have from them run away with our deposit?

Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.

The formalities of my remortgage has taken place for my property in Church Village. Conveyancing was a necessary evil but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. Who do I contact should I wish to lodge a complaint?

Almost all banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Team 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, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR who will take matters further.

Having digested plenty of house buying guides, I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Church Village solicitor - who is on the Lloyds conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?

Lloyds will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Lloyds 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 Church Village 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.

What does a local search tell me concerning the house I am buying in Church Village?

Church Village conveyancing often starts with the submitting local authority searches directly from your local Authority or via a personal search company such as Searches UK The local search plays an important part in most Church Village conveyancing purchase; as long as you wish to avoid any nasty once you have moved into your new home. The search should reveal information on, amongst other things, details on planning applications relevant to the property (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of thirteen subject areas.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up during conveyancing in Church Village?

Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Church Village. 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…’

At last I have had an offer on an apartment in Church Village accepted, but there is a chain. The sellers have offered on a property, although it’s not been accepted yet, and are looking at other properties booked. I have selected a local conveyancing lawyer in Church Village. What do I do now? At what point should I apply for the mortgage with Barclays?

It is understandable to have anxieties where there is an associated chain given your reluctance to be too out of pocket too early (mortgage application is approx one thousand pounds, then valuation, Church Village conveyancing search fees, etc). The first course of action is to ensure that your lawyer is on the Barclays conveyancing panel. Concerning the subsequent steps this very much dictated by the circumstances of your transaction, desire for this property and on the state of the market. In a buoyant market the majority of home buyers would apply for a home loan with Barclays and pay for the survey and only if it was satisfactory would they request their conveyancer to move forward with the conveyancing in Church Village.