My wife and I are hoping to acquire a flat in Yateley and have appointed a Yateley conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our conveyancer has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Clydesdale have this evening contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Yateley conveyancer is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?

When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is conventional for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your mortgage company and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You don't have to instruct a firm on the bank's conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Yateley lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.

I own a freehold premises in Yateley but nevertheless pay rent, why is this and what is this?

It’s unusual for properties in Yateley and has limited impact for conveyancing in Yateley 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 generation of fresh rentcharges from 1977 onwards.

Previous rentcharges can now be extinguished by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence post 2037 is to be extinguished.

I am buying a detached bungalow in Yateley. Our aim is to carry out a loft conversion at the property.Will legal work on the property involve investigations to ascertain if these alterations are permitted?

Your property lawyer will check the registered title as conveyancing in Yateley will occasionally identify restrictions in the title deeds which prevent certain alterations or require the permission of a 3rd party. Many extensions need local authority planning permissions and approval in compliance with building regulations. Certain locations are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which often prevent or affect extensions. You should check these issues with a surveyor before you commit yourself to a purchase.

My solicitor has informed me that restrictive coveneant insurance is necessary on my purchase. What is the level of cover for Yateley conveyancing?

The right level of restrictive coveneant indemnity insurance should be dictated by who who your lender is. It would differ for example between HSBC Bank and Skipton Building Society. Conveyancing practitioners as opposed to members of the public take out such policies.

I happen to be the only recipient of my late father’s will with all property in now in my sole name, including the my former home in Yateley. Conveyancing formalities meant that the Land Registry date was in June. I now wish to sell up. I understand that there is a Mortgage Lenders six month 'rule', which means that my proprietorship could be regarded the same way as though I had purchased the house in June. Is the property unsalable for six months?

The CML handbook instructs conveyancers to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." By the strict wording you might be caught by that. How sensible a view banks take of it, depend on the lender as this requirement is principally there to capture subsales or the wholesaling and assigning of properties.

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

Covenants that are restrictive in nature can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Yateley. 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…’

I am 18 days into a freehold purchase having been referred to solicitors by the selling agent to do our conveyancing in Yateley. We are not happy. Could you you assist me in finding new conveyancers?

A lawyer would have to be very poor to suggest diss instructing them. Has your mortgage been sent? If so you must advise them of the new contact details and get the offer are issued to the new lawyers. Your solicitor ideally should be on the mortgage company panel to avoid added fees and frustration. So that should be your starting point. Our search tool should help you find a lender approved conveyancer for your conveyancing in Yateley