I am selling my apartment in Much Wenlock and the EA has just called to advise that the purchasers are appointing a new conveyancer. I am told that this is due to the fact that the lender will only engage with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a major lender only work with specific lawyers rather the firm that they want to choose to handle their conveyancing in Much Wenlock ?

Mortgage companies have always had an approved set of law firms they are content to work with, but in the past few years big names such as Santander, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for more than 15 years.

Banks justify this action to a rise in fraud as the reason for the pruning – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. Banks tend not to reveal how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Some are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. The purchasers are not going to have any impact on this.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly picked up during conveyancing in Much Wenlock?

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

The estate agent has sent us the confirmation of our purchase of a new build apartment in Much Wenlock. Conveyancing is a frightening process 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.

Here are examples of a selection of leasehold new build enquiries that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Much Wenlock

Where there is an Undertaking being granted there is the risk of forfeiture of the Headlease subject to relief if one or more of the Underlessees are willing to accept the original Head Lessee’s obligations as otherwise relief will be denied to the Underlessees. The only alternatives are the Head Lessor agreeing not to forfeit the Headlease or the Head Lessee guaranteeing to the Underlessees that it will not be in breach of the Headlease. If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants. Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision.

I am looking for a ground for flat up to £195,000 and found one round the corner in Much Wenlock I like with amenity areas and station nearby, however it only has 49 years unexpired on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Much Wenlock in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a lease with such few years left?

If you require a home loan that many years will likely be an issue. Discount the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current proprietor has owned the property for a minimum of twenty four months you can request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing lawyer regarding this.

Am I best advised to use a Much Wenlock conveyancing lawyer in close proximity to the house I am buying? An old friend can deal with the conveyancing but her office is a couple of hundredkilometers drive away.

The benefit of a local Much Wenlock conveyancing practice is that you can attend the office to sign documents, hand in your identification documents and apply pressure on them if necessary. They will also have local intelligence which is a bonus. However nothing is more important than finding someone that will do a good and efficient job. If you know people who instructed your friend and they were happy that should surpass using an unfamiliar Much Wenlock conveyancing lawyer just because they are Much Wenlock based.