My wife and I are hoping to purchase a house in Harold Wood and are in fact using a Harold Wood conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our conveyancer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Accord Mortgages Ltd have this afternoon contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Harold Wood conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. What do we do from here?

Where you are buying a property needing a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the bank's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Harold Wood lawyers, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.

Our son is about to exchange on a new build apartment in Harold Wood with a mortgage from Clydesdale. His conveyancer has advised him of a delay in receiving the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. This document is news to me - what is it and who needs sight of it?

The document is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the purchase. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Clydesdale conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.

I own a freehold residence in Harold Wood yet invoiced for rent, why is this and what is this?

It is rare for properties in Harold Wood and has limited impact for conveyancing in Harold Wood but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.

Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges have existed for many centuries, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the establishment of new rentcharges from 1977 onwards.

Old rentcharges can now be redeemed by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence in 2037 is to be extinguished.

The estate agent has sent us the confirmation of our purchase of a new build flat in Harold Wood. Conveyancing is necessary evil at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build conveyancing.

Set out below are examples of a selection of leasehold new build enquiries that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Harold Wood

Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision. Where service of notices and proceedings can be at the property demised please confirm that this can be amended to include simultaneous services at the Lessees’ solicitors’ offices where the Lessee from time to time is not resident in the UK - such solicitors may be varied by notice in writing to the Landlord from time to time but otherwise will be as previously specified. Please confirm the Lease plans are architect prepared. Investor purchasers must be able to freely grant unsecured tenancies at market rents without requiring any consents.

In searching the web for the term cheap conveyancing in Harold Wood it shows results of many conveyancerslocally. With so much choice what is the best way to find the suitable property lawyer for my move?

The ideal way of finding a suitable conveyancer is via personal referral, so enquire of colleagues and family who have purchased a property in Harold Wood or a local estate agent or financial adviser. Costs for conveyancing in Harold Wood differ, so it's sensible to secure at least three costs illustrations from varying types of solicitors. Be sure to seek confirmation that the charges are assured not to increase.