All was ready to complete my purchase in Edgware next Thursday. My lawyer now wants me to supply her with evidence of content and building insurance for the property as as she informs me that she is duty bound to validate that it is in order for the bank. What risks does the mortgage company expect the insurance to cover?

All property lawyers on acting for lenders would need to check that the following risks are covered fire; lightning; aircraft; explosion; earthquake; storm; flood; escape of water or oil; riot; malicious damage; theft or attempted theft; falling trees and branches and aerials; subsidence; heave;landslip;collision;accidental damage to underground services;professional fees, demolition and site clearance costs; and public liability to anyone else. There are some other issues such as the level of excess that are set out in a lender’s UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. These obligations are not unique to conveyancing in Edgware.

We wanted to use a property lawyer in Edgware for our home move. Our broker informed us that our mortgage company Norwich and Peterborough Building Society won't deal with them. Why is this not regarded as unfair competition?

Banks ordinarily imposes restrictions either the type or the number of conveyancing firms on their panel. A common example of such restriction(s) being that a law practice must have two or more partners. As well as restricting the type of firm, some have decided to limit the number of firms they permit to act for them. You should note that Norwich and Peterborough Building Society have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any member of Norwich and Peterborough Building Society Conveyancer Panel. Mortgage fraud was a primary driver in the reduction of solicitor panels a few years ago even though there remains differing views about the extent of solicitor engagement in some of that fraud. Figures from the Land Registry reveal that plenty of law firms, including some in or near Edgware only conduct very few conveyances per annum.

A colleague advised me that in buying a property in Edgware there could be various restrictions prohibiting external alterations to the property. Is this right?

There are a number of properties in Edgware which have some sort of restriction or requirement of consent to external variations. Part of the conveyancing in Edgware should determine what restrictions are applicable and advising you as part of a ROT that should be sent to you.

The formalities of my purchase has taken place for my property in Edgware. Conveyancing was satisfactory but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. How does one go about formally complaining?

All banks and building societies have complaints procedures. Your first port of call should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Services Team at head office. In most cases complaints to a lender are sorted out very quickly. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service with full details of your complaint.

At last I have had an offer on a flat in Edgware agreed to, but there is a chain. The sellers have offered on a flat, but it’s not yet agreed to, and have viewings of other flats booked. I have chosen a bricks and mortar conveyancing solicitor in Edgware. What should be my next step? At what point should I apply for the mortgage with Barclays?

It is normal to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket prematurely (mortgage application is in the region of £1k, then valuation, Edgware conveyancing search fees, etc). The first thing to do is ensure that your property lawyer is on the Barclays conveyancing panel. Regarding the subsequent steps this very much dictated by the circumstances of your case, desire for this property and on the state of the market. During a hot market many purchasers would apply for a home loan with Barclays and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they pay their lawyer to press on with the conveyancing in Edgware.

What can a local search inform me regarding the house we're purchasing in Edgware?

Edgware conveyancing often commences with the applying for local authority searches directly from your local Authority or via a personal search company for example Searchflow The local search plays a central part in many a Edgware conveyancing purchase; that is if you wish to avoid any unpleasant once you have moved into your property. The search will reveal data on, amongst other things, details on planning applications applicable to the premises (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of thirteen topic areas.

I am buying a new build house in Edgware with the aid of help to buy. The builders would not reduce the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of extras instead. The property agent told me not to tell my solicitor about this deal as it would impact my loan with the bank. Is this normal?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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.