The sellers of the home we are hoping to buy are using a conveyancing firm in London Colney who has insisted on a lock out agreement with a deposit of 5k. Are such arrangements recommended for London Colney conveyancing transactions?

This type of arrangement is not the norm in London Colney, conveyancers are not keen on them as they detract from focusing on the primary objective, namely conveyancing and if you end up losing your deposit then the solicitor at best left with an upset client and at worst a litigious one. Furthermore, there is no certainty that just because the seller has executed a lock out agreement they will sell to you. They may be in contravention of the contract if they receive a large enough offer to do so because an aggrieved party with the benefit of a lockout agreement will still be obliged show losses as a consequence of the breach and these may not equate the extra amount that the owner may obtain by breaking the contract, no matter how morally shameful that may be.

It is a dozen years since I purchased my property in London Colney. Conveyancing lawyers have now been appointed on the sale but I can't track down the deeds. Is this a major issue?

Don’t worry too much. First there is a chance that the deeds will be kept by the mortgage company or they may be in the possession of the conveyancers who oversaw the purchase. Secondly the chances are that the property will be registered at the land registry and you will be able to establish that you own the property by your conveyancing lawyers obtaining current official copies of the land registers. The vast majority of conveyancing in London Colney involves registered property but in the rare situation where your home is unregistered it adds to the complexity but is not insurmountable.

My brother-in-law has suggested I instruct a conveyancing solicitor in London Colney. I need to find out whether they are accepted on the Clydesdale conveyancing panel. Could you assist?

You should call the conveyancer and enquire if they are on the lender panel. Alternatively you can call Clydesdale who may be able to assist.

I am the sole beneficiary of my late mum's estate and I have everything in my name alone, including the my former home in London Colney. The London Colney property was put into my name in July. I now wish to sell up. I do know about the CML 6 month 'rule', meaning my proprietorship will be regarded the same way as if I'd bought the house in July. Do I have to wait half a year to sell?

The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook instructs solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." Technically you may be impacted by that. How practical a view banks take of it, depend on the bank as this clause primarily exists to identify the purchase and immediately sell or the quick reselling of property.

I have a mortgage with Nationwide for my property in London Colney. Conveyancing has been completed a year ago. If I am intending to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Nationwide?

You must advise Nationwide in advance of letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Nationwide’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Nationwide will permit you to let out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Nationwide directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Nationwide conveyancing panel firm.

Leeds Building Society have agreed my mortgage in principle, my offer on a flat in London Colney has been accepted, what happens next?

Your property agent will wish to know who your solicitors are (make sure the solicitors are on the lender’s approved list). Telephone Leeds Building Society or the broker and complete any appropriate documentation. Leeds Building Society will instruct a valuer who will get in touch with the estate agent or vendor to book a time for the valuation to happen. Once carried out (assuming no problems) it takes approximately ten days for the mortgage offer to be issued. Leeds Building Society will issue the offer to you and your property lawyers. The legal work will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing in London Colney.

I am purchasing my first flat in London Colney with the aid of help to buy. The builders refused to reduce the amount so I negotiated £7000 of fixtures and fittings instead. The estate agent told me not disclose to my solicitor about the extras as it could affect my loan with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

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.