The mortgage agreement from Santander for the refinancing of my 2 room flat is due by the end of next week. Are you able to recommend a low cost conveyancing law firm in Shepton Mallet?

You are on the wrong site if you are in need of a cheap conveyancing solicitors in Shepton Mallet. Our intention is to offer cost effective conveyancing but we do not aim to advertise as being the cheapest. Avoid the trap of appointing companies offering the bait of £100 conveyancing in Shepton Mallet. The optimum outcome, in deciding on cheap conveyancing, you will receive what you pay for and at worst it will result in you being stung for extras and still not receive the service required.

I am buying a property without a mortgage in Shepton Mallet. I have resided for the previous dozen years in Shepton Mallet. Conveyancing searches are exorbitant. Given that I know the area and road very well should I not bother getting the solicitor to do all the conveyancing searches?

If you not getting a home loan, then almost all of the Shepton Mallet conveyancing searches are optional. Your solicitor will 'advise', perhaps strongly, that you should have searches done, but he is duty bound to take that path of encouragement . One thing to take into account; if you are going to dispose of the house one day, it may be of importance to your future purchaser what the searches reveal. On occasion houses with day to day issues can still reveal adverse search results. A good conveyancing solicitor in Shepton Mallet will be able to give you some constructive guidance here.

I am the registered owner of a freehold property in Shepton Mallet yet invoiced for rent, why is this and what is this?

It’s unusual for properties in Shepton Mallet and has limited impact for conveyancing in Shepton Mallet 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 hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the creation of fresh rentcharges post 1977.

Previous rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a lump sum payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence post 2037 will be extinguished.

Will our solicitor be raising questions about flooding during the conveyancing in Shepton Mallet.

The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for conveyancers dealing with homes in Shepton Mallet. Some people will purchase a house in Shepton Mallet, fully aware that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, leaving to one side the physical destruction, where a property is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to obtain a mortgage, adequate insurance cover, or dispose of the property. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.

Conveyancers are not qualified to impart advice on flood risk, however there are a various searches that can be initiated by the purchaser or on a buyer’s behalf which should give them a better appreciation of the risks in Shepton Mallet. The conventional set of completed inquiry forms sent to a purchaser’s solicitor (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) includes a usual question of the vendor to discover whether the property has ever been flooded. In the event that the residence has been flooded in past and is not disclosed by the vendor, then a purchaser may issue a claim for damages as a result of such an incorrect response. The buyer’s lawyers should also carry out an enviro report. This will higlight whether there is a recorded flood risk. If so, further investigations will need to be made.

My lawyers in Shepton Mallet have advised me that they can not locate my conveyancing file. To assist with my purchase I took out a mortgage with the lender. Is it case that being on the lender conveyancing panel they need to have retained the file for a number of years?

It very much depends from lender to lender but many of the Terms and Conditions of Conveyancing Panel Appointment require the file to be held for a period of 6 years. That being said we have not seen a copy of the lender Conveyancing Panel Terms. It might be worth you contacting the bank directly.