I am in the process of selling my house in Bourne and the EA has just e-mailed to advise that the purchasers are appointing a new solicitor. The excuse is that the mortgage company will only work with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. Why would a leading lender only engage with certain solicitors rather the firm that they want to appoint for their conveyancing in Bourne ?

Mortgage companies have always had an approved set of law firms that can represent them, but in recent years big names such as Lloyds Banking Group, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for more than 25 years.

Mortgage companies point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. No lender will say 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 do not even realise 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 sway in the decision.

We are purchasing our first home. The lawyer has messagedto check if we want to order supplemental conveyancing searches. We are really unsure what's needed for conveyancing in Bourne

The scope of Bourne conveyancing searches depends primarily on the premises, the location, the probability of any of these risks, your familiarity of the area and risks, your overall approach to risk. What matters is that you properly appreciate what information each search could supply. Then you can make a decision if you consider that you need that information. If unclear, ask the conveyancing practitioner to explain.

My wife and I purchased a 4 bedroom Edwardian house in Bourne. Conveyancing lawyer represented me and Halifax. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and I saw two entries: one for freehold, the second leasehold with the exact same address. If a house is not a freehold shouldn't I have been informed?

You need to assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Bourne and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they sell they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with buyers. You can also enquire as to the situation with your conveyancing practitioner who conducted the conveyancing.

I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £245,000 and found one close by in Bourne I like with open areas and railway links nearby, however it's only got 49 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Bourne for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error acquiring a short lease?

Should you need a mortgage the remaining unexpired lease term will likely be an issue. Discount the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the property for at least twenty four months you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor concerning this matter.

When it comes to my conveyancing in Bourne should I be charged VAT on the following: (1) Land reg fee on purchase (2) Pre - completion search fee (3) SDLT E submission on purchase (4) Bank TT fee

(1) Land reg fee on purchase - No (2) Pre - completion search fees -No, (such conveyancing searches are HMLR ones and means £4 and possibly £2 bankruptcy per name on your mortgage) (3) SDLT E submission on your purchase - There is no VAT on Stamp Duty. However if the firm is charging a stamp duty e-submission fee as part of their services - some Bourne conveyancers do - that will incur VAT(4) Bank transfer fee - Yes it is for the conveyancing practitioner's time in submitting the funds this way.