We are buying a property and require a conveyancing solicitor in Godmanchester who is on the Bank of Ireland solicitor panel. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a conveyancing firm?

Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Bank of Ireland . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in Godmanchester.

Is it the case that all Godmanchester solicitor firms on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel are governed by the SRA?

As solicitors, in order to be on the Virgin Money approved list of solicitors they would need to be governed by the SRA. Many mortgage companies do allow licenced conveyancers on their panel and in such a situation the firms would be regulated by the CLC.

We are getting the release of further monies on our mortgage from HSBC as we intend to carry out improvements to our home in Godmanchester. Are we obliged to choose a local Godmanchester solicitor on the HSBC conveyancing panel to deal with the legals?

HSBC would not normally require firms on their approved list of lawyers to deal with the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the HSBC list.

Two weeks ago we had a mortgage agreed in principle with Skipton. Godmanchester conveyancing practitioners were appointed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from Skipton?

There is no definitive answer here. Have Skipton conducted the valuation? Have you advised Skipton as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the Skipton conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.

Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my home are lost. The solicitors who handled the conveyancing in Godmanchester 5 years ago no longer exist. What do I do?

As long as you have a registered title the information relating to your proprietorship will be recorded by the Land Registry with a Title Number. It is possible to carry out a search at the Land Registry, identify your house and secure up to date copies of the Registered Entries for a small fee. If the title is Leasehold then the Land Registry will in most cases hold a file duplicate of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be retrieved for twenty pounds.

I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold element on a house I put an offer in last month in what was supposed to be a straight forward, chain free conveyancing. Godmanchester is the location of the property. Can you offer any assistance?

Flying freeholds in Godmanchester are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Godmanchester 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 Godmanchester 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 property.

Being a leasehold owner I am on the hook for a maintenance fee for my first floor flat in Godmanchester. As a result of personal circumstances I slipped into arrears with payments. The managing agents agreed a clearance plan but there remains three thousand pounds currently outstanding.

I want to sell and I am concerned this can hold me back if I have to settle the arrears in advance. I'd like to sell up and subsequently repay the arrears from the completion monies - is this achievable?

You should check with the conveyancing practitioner undertaking your Godmanchester conveyancing but one option may be to agree for the outstanding amount to be transferred to the purchasers. The contractual price due would be reduced to reflect the amount of debt they take on. They would then deal with the fees post completion of the purchase.