I sincerely hope you can help me. My Herefordshire conveyancer is advising me that he is legally obliged toapply for Herefordshire conveyancing searches asthe firm are on the Lloydsconveyancing panel. Is my lawyer correct?

Unfortunately both you and your lawyer have little choice here. As you are taking a mortgage with a lender your property lawyer has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the CML Conveyancing Handbook. Your conveyancing practitioner would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of your bank’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to follow the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook requirements . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Herefordshire conveyancing searches.

I purchased a freehold property in Herefordshire but still charged rent, why is this and what is this?

It’s unusual for properties in Herefordshire and has limited impact for conveyancing in Herefordshire 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 date back hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the generation of new rentcharges post 1977.

Old rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a lump sum payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence after 2037 is to be dispensed with completely.

The Herefordshire conveyancing lawyers that just started acting on my house acquisition in Herefordshire have suddenly closed. They were on acting for me because I needed a firm on the Skipton conveyancing panel and my family Herefordshire lawyer was not. I gave my credit card details for them to take one hundred and fifty pounds for searches. What do I do now?

Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then inform them straight away so that they advise the vendors that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You should appoint new lawyers that are on the Skipton 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 lawyers may be able to assist.

I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold element on a house I have offered on two weeks back in what should have been a quick, no chain conveyancing. Herefordshire is the location of the property. Can you shed any light on this issue?

Flying freeholds in Herefordshire are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Herefordshire you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Herefordshire may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.

I’m about to sell my garden flat in Herefordshire. Conveyancing has not commenced, but I have recently received a quarterly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is discharge the maintenance contribution as you normally would given that all ground rent and maintenance charges will be allotted on completion, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I invested in buying a studio flat in Herefordshire, conveyancing having been completed in 1995. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Herefordshire with a long lease are worth £260,000. The ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease ends on 21st October 2101

You have 75 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £8,600 and £9,800 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.