I purchased a freehold residence in St Mellons but still charged rent, why is this and what is this?

It’s unusual for properties in St Mellons and has limited impact for conveyancing in St Mellons 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 fresh rentcharges post 1977.

Old rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence after 2037 will be dispensed with completely.

The St Mellons conveyancing firm that just started acting on my house acquisition in St Mellons have suddenly closed. I only went with them because I needed a lawyer on the Skipton conveyancing panel and my family St Mellons 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 immediately so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to the problems encountered. Most sellers would 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 help.

When it comes to lenders such as Clydesdale, do St Mellons property lawyers face a yearly amount to be on the list of approved solicitors?

We are unaware of any mortgage company fees to register on their list of approved firms, although some do charge an administration fee to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.

I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Aldermore. I assume I don't need a St Mellons conveyancing practitioner on the Aldermore panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.

If you have finished paying off your Aldermore mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Aldermore mortgage from the register. Aldermore, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:

1. but are not moving to another property
2. where Aldermore has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
3. Aldermore has instructed the Land Registry to do so

I can not fathom if my bank requires a lease extension. I have telephoned my St Mellons building society branch on a couple of occasions and was informed it wasn't a problem and they will lend. My St Mellons conveyancing solicitor - who is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel- telephoned to say that they will not lend based on their published requirements. I simply don't know who is right.

Your property lawyer has to comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook section two provisions for your lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the mortgage company will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the lender to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.

In my capacity as executor for the estate of my father I am selling a residence in Swansea but I am based in St Mellons. My conveyancer (who is 260 kilometers awayhas requested that I execute a stat dec prior to completion. Could you suggest a conveyancing lawyer in St Mellons who can witness this legal document for me?

strictly speaking you are unlikely to need to have the documents attested by a conveyancing solicitor. Ordinarily any notary public or solicitor will do regardless of whether they are located in St Mellons

I’m about to sell my garden flat in St Mellons. Conveyancing is yet to be initiated, but I have recently had a yearly service charge invoice – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should clear the invoice as you normally would as all ground rent and maintenance invoices should be apportioned as part of the financial calculations for completion monies, so you will be reimbursed by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer until 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 am the registered owner of a ground floor flat in St Mellons, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you shed any light on how much the price could be for a 90 year extension to my lease? Equivalent flats in St Mellons with an extended lease are worth £216,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease expires on 21st October 2090

You have 69 years left to run the likely cost is going to be between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs without more detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.