I am buying a end of terrace house in Claverdon. The intention is to an extension at the rear at the house.Will legal investigations on the property involve checks to see if these works are permitted?

Your conveyancer will review the registered title as conveyancing in Claverdon will sometimes reveal restrictions in the title deeds which restrict certain works or require the consent of a 3rd party. Many additions need local authority planning consent and approval under the building regulations. Many areas are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which often prevent or impact extensions. You should check these things with a surveyor ahead of any purchase.

I had a mortgage agreed in principle with Santander. Claverdon conveyancing practitioners were appointed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from Santander?

There is no definitive answer here. Have Santander done the survey? Have you advised Santander as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Santander conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.

I'm at the point of looking at apartments in Claverdon and I am about to put in an offer. Should I already have a solicitor in place at this stage? I will be getting a mortgage with Virgin Money.

It would be advisable to start your search sooner rather than later. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their contact information on to the EA. Given that you are obtaining a mortgage with Virgin Money, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.

Do I need to pay for insurance to cover chancel repairs when purchasing a house in Claverdon?

Unless a prior acquisition of the property took place after 12 October 2013 you may take it that conveyancing practitioners delivering conveyancing in Claverdon to continue to propose a a chancel search and or chancel repair liability insurance.

It has been 3 months since my purchase conveyancing in Claverdon completed. I have checked the Land Registry site which shows that I paid £200,000 when infact I paid £160,000. Why the discrepancy?

The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the asset from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.

I'm purchasing my first flat in Claverdon benefiting from help to buy. The builders refused to move on the amount so I negotiated £7000 of fixtures and fittings instead. The property agent told me not to tell my conveyancer about the extras as it could affect my mortgage with the bank. Is this normal?.

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.

How easy is it to change a solicitor as I need to find a Claverdon based firm who is on the bank conveyancing panel. Is it practical to instruct different lawyers?

If you haven't yet instructed a solicitor to do anything for you and at this stage simply received quotes, you're perfectly free to choose a different solicitor to carry out your work for you. The best way is to get recommendations from friends or family who have actually used the solicitor or conveyancer in Claverdon that you're considering.