The Greenfield conveyancing lawyers that I appointed last week on my purchase in Greenfield have without warning closed. I chose them because I needed a firm on the Nottingham conveyancing panel and my family Greenfield lawyer was not. I issued them a cheque for two hundred pounds in advance. What should be my next steps?

Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then inform them straight away so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Most sellers would be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Nottingham 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 solicitors should be in a position to assist.

Last month we had a mortgage agreed in principle with Kent Reliance. Greenfield conveyancing practitioners have been instructed. How long does it take for Kent Reliance to forward the offer to the conveyancer?

Some lenders take longer than others. Have Kent Reliance done the survey? Have you informed Kent Reliance as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.

I have a mortgage with Bank of Ireland for my property in Greenfield. Conveyancing has been completed a year ago. Should I wish to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Bank of Ireland?

You must advise Bank of Ireland in advance of renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of Bank of Ireland’s mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will permit you to let out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Bank of Ireland directly. You need not do this via a Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel solicitor.

Having read lots of house buying guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Greenfield solicitor - who is on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?

Bank of Ireland will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Bank of Ireland will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. Your conveyancing practitioner will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by your Greenfield postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Bank of Ireland, you could contact them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors in Greenfield.

I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold element on a house I have offered on last month in what should have been a quick, no chain conveyancing. Greenfield is the location of the property. Can you shed any light on this issue?

Flying freeholds in Greenfield are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Greenfield you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds thoroughly. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Greenfield may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.

I own a leasehold house in Greenfield. Conveyancing and Nottingham Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Greenfield who previously acted has now retired. Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that this person is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Greenfield conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I invested in buying a 1 bedroom flat in Greenfield, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Similar flats in Greenfield with over 90 years remaining are worth £216,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2095

You have 69 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £9,500 and £11,000 plus costs.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.

What is the reason for new build conveyancing in Greenfield being more expensive?

Purchasing a brand new premises is significantly distinct from the normal house purchase conveyancing in Greenfield. For a start developers normally require contracts to exchange within a tight deadline, so there is a a great deal of pressure on your conveyancer to ensure all is in order. Furthermore new build properties frequently necessitate the checking of adoption of highways, drains, planning considerations, building warranties or architects certificates. Lenders requirements are also more detailed. Due to the complex nature of the process for these types of properties, the conveyancing new build fees are higher than normal.