A HIP is now required in the event of a property being offered for sale to the general public.

However, in the event of a privately-negotiated sale no HIP is required – whether or not this is a sale to a member of your family, provided it has not been marketed in any way.

Marketing includes a sign in your garden or window advising that the property is for sale. You will, however, still require an Energy Performance Certificate.

Should you have placed your property on the market only for a member of your family to end up buying it, then a HIP will be required as you cannot market your property without one.

* Emyr Pierce is Managing Partner of Emyr Pierce Solicitors in Rhiwbina, Cardiff, Western Mail Conveyancer of the Year, specialising in Domestic and Commercial Property. Contact www.emyrpierce.co.uk or email law@emyrpierce.co.uk

It is a condition of all mortgages that if you have anyone living at the property, other than the Borrowers, who is over the age of 17 and who resides at the property as his or her main residence, you are obliged to notify your mortgage company immediately as they will require that individual to sign a form effectively postponing that individual’s right to occupy the property in favour of the mortgage company’s rights under the mortgage.

The reason for this is that the Borrowers will have entered into a binding legal contract with the Lender whereby, in return for the money borrowed, the Borrowers charge the property in favour of the mortgage company. This contract is personal to the mortgage company and Borrowers.

In a case 20 years ago it was established that any person other than the Borrowers over the age of 17 who occupy the property as their main residence have the right to occupy that property – a right that ranks in priority to any other interest which a third party may have in the property, such as a mortgage company.

This decision was far reaching and resulted in all mortgage companies addressing the problem by requiring a formal Deed from the occupier whereby the occupier postpones his or her interest in the property.

Failure to obtain such a form would result in your son being entitled to remain living in the property in the event of you falling into arrears on your mortgage and being re-possessed.

You would, however, be liable for any loss suffered by the mortgage company due to your breach of your mortgage conditions.

* Emyr Pierce is Managing Partner of Emyr Pierce Solicitors in Rhiwbina, Cardiff, Western Mail Conveyancer of the Year, specialising in Domestic and Commercial Property. Contact www.emyrpierce.co.uk or email law@emyrpierce.co.uk

The solicitor acting on your behalf in the purchase of your new home will, usually, also act on behalf of your lender providing you with the mortgage funds required for your purchase.

Your solicitor will need to satisfy very strict and extensive conditions and requirements which all lenders require from solicitors and conveyancers. This obliges your solicitor to report to your Lender any issues arising out of any pre contract investigations, either in respect of the title of the property, or your own personal circumstances, insofar as these differ from the position reflected in your mortgage offer, the most common variation being a change in the purchase price.

Only when your solicitor is satisfied on all aspects will he be prepared to submit to your Lender his report on the title of the property, otherwise known as the Certificate of Title.

This is the form which confirms to the Lender that all matters relating to the property are acceptable, that there are no onerous covenants or lack of rights of access or services to the property, and that, in the opinion of the solicitor, the property has a good and marketable title. The certificate will also specify the completion date on which the funds are required.

* Emyr Pierce is Managing Partner of Emyr Pierce Solicitors in Rhiwbina, Cardiff, Western Mail Conveyancer of the Year, specialising in Domestic and Commercial Property. Contact www.emyrpierce.co.uk or email law@emyrpierce.co.uk

Unfortunately it is not true. Some years ago Stamp Duty, as it was then, was only payable on the “Equality of Exchange”. This was the difference between the sale and the purchase prices and proved popular in the last recession when property developers were finding it difficult to sell new properties and the Stamp Duty savings were a popular attraction of part exchange schemes.

The new regulations governing Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT), as it is now, has removed this major benefit in the case of part exchange transactions. Stamp Duty Land Tax is payable on the value of the asset being acquired – regardless of whether it is being part exchanged for an existing asset.

Accordingly, SDLT will be payable on properties where the price exceeds £175,000.00 and not on the “Equality of Exchange” between the two part exchange values.

* Emyr Pierce is Managing Partner of Emyr Pierce Solicitors in Rhiwbina, Cardiff, Western Mail Conveyancer of the Year, specialising in Domestic and Commercial Property. Contact www.emyrpierce.co.uk or email law@emyrpierce.co.uk

It is increasingly the case on new open plan developments that plots have shared driveways. The main issue to consider is that each property with a shared access will be bound by the existence of various covenants preventing the obstruction of the shared access.

The shared driveway will be private and not form part of the public highway which means those occupiers who have the right to use it will, in turn, have an obligation to contribute an equal percentage of the cost of maintaining and repairing the shared driveway.

Usually, a shared driveway does not cause unnecessary problems. However, there is always the risk that one of your neighbours will prove unreasonable, in which case your only remedy will be through the developer who will have the right to enforce the covenants.

* Emyr Pierce is Managing Partner of Emyr Pierce Solicitors in Rhiwbina, Cardiff, Western Mail Conveyancer of the Year, specialising in Domestic and Commercial Property. Contact www.emyrpierce.co.uk or email law@emyrpierce.co.uk

The need to protect your share of the assets which you own jointly with your new wife to secure the inheritance of your children by your first marriage is extremely important. Often the bulk of your Estate is represented by the value of your house. If the property was previously in your sole name prior to your remarriage then there is a danger that, following your remarriage, one way or another your Estate may not necessarily pass to your children by your first marriage.

Having placed the property in joint ownership with your new wife it is imperative to ensure that you own the property as tenants in common and not joint tenants. On the death of a joint tenant the surviving joint tenant automatically inherits the whole of the property by survivorship.

Owning the property with your new wife as tenants in common ensures that your one half share in the property can be left to whoever you specify in your Will. Drawing up a suitable Will leaving your one half share of the property to your children by your first marriage will ensure that their inheritance is protected.

The only issue then is that your new wife may well want to continue living in the property of which she is a one half owner. You should, therefore, include a provision in your Will allowing your wife the right to remain in the matrimonial home until the earlier of her dying, voluntarily vacating, co-habiting with another, or her remarrying. The drawback is your children may not see their inheritance until after one of those events happen.

* Emyr Pierce is Managing Partner of Emyr Pierce Solicitors in Rhiwbina, Cardiff, Western Mail Conveyancer of the Year, specialising in Domestic and Commercial Property. Contact www.emyrpierce.co.uk or email law@emyrpierce.co.uk

Of course. Other than the structure of the building, the central heating system is the most expensive component in any property and you are deemed to buy a property in the full knowledge of its state and condition.

I would always advise a purchaser to have the central heating system inspected by a central heating engineer prior to exchange of contracts in order to ensure it is in good working order.

Should your Engineer’s Report condemn the system then you would have identified that it needs either replacing or substantial repair, before making a legal commitment to purchasing the property. This would enable you to re-negotiate the price.

Should you complete the purchase and then arrange for the system to be serviced only to find out that the system is condemned, it would then be too late for you to claim any recompense against the seller, or re-negotiate the purchase price.

* Emyr Pierce is Managing Partner of Emyr Pierce Solicitors in Rhiwbina, Cardiff, Western Mail Conveyancer of the Year, specialising in Domestic and Commercial Property. Contact www.emyrpierce.co.uk or email law@emyrpierce.co.uk

Despite the fact that your tenant may have continued to occupy beyond the date of a fixed term tenancy, usually six months, you still have to follow the appropriate procedure and cannot simply evict her, or change the locks as this would be a breach of the Anti-Eviction Laws.

If your tenant is at least two months (if payable monthly) and eight weeks (if payable weekly or fortnightly) in arrears with her rent then the mandatory ground for possession on the grounds of arrears of rent will be available to you and the Court must make an Order

You are strongly advised to seek the advice of a solicitor to ensure the appropriate timescales are strictly adhered to. Failure to follow these will result in your having to begin the process all over again, causing further delays.

* Emyr Pierce is Managing Partner of Emyr Pierce Solicitors in Rhiwbina, Cardiff, Western Mail Conveyancer of the Year, specialising in Domestic and Commercial Property. Contact www.emyrpierce.co.uk or email law@emyrpierce.co.uk

You need to seek the advice of a surveyor to value the land you are proposing to sell, and ensure that by transferring the land you do not lose any critical value element of the land you are keeping – the Retained Land.

You will be unable to sell any part of your property which is subject to a mortgage without the consent of your mortgagee. Therefore, once you have an agreed valuation you must ask your mortgage company for consent for the transfer of this piece of land as it will need to be released from their Security.

Depending on the size of the piece of land and its value, the mortgage company may require you to reduce the amount of the mortgage by paying them part of the proceeds from the sale. This will, of course, depend upon the size of your mortgage in proportion to the value of the Retained Land and, in most cases involving small pieces of land, they will not be too concerned about any reduction in the value of the land against which they have their Security.

Please ensure that the land in question does not have vital services passing underneath it otherwise certain rights will need to be reserved over the land transferred in order to retain the right to use those services and access for any future maintenance and repair.

Finally, a new boundary will need to be established and I would strongly advise you to ensure that the adjoining owner is responsible for its construction and its future maintenance and repair.

* Emyr Pierce is Managing Partner of Emyr Pierce Solicitors in Rhiwbina, Cardiff, Western Mail Conveyancer of the Year, specialising in Domestic and Commercial Property. Contact www.emyrpierce.co.uk or email law@emyrpierce.co.uk

This will inevitably cause a delay in the sale. If your father does not have the necessary legal capacity to enter into a contract as a result of the stroke then you have no alternative other than to apply to the Office for the Public Guardian for the appointment of a Deputy to act on his behalf. This can take many weeks, inevitably causing a delay in the transaction. This cannot be helped. If your father simply becomes physically impaired as a result of the stroke, but is fully aware of what is happening and is clear as to his intention to sell the property, then he can appoint an Attorney to act on his behalf by drawing up a Lasting Power of Attorney. However, under the new LPA regulations this will only become effective once it is registered with the Office for the Public Guardian and again there can be a delay of some weeks before such registration is completed. Generally, the extent of the delay will depend of what provision, if any, your father had made prior to his suffering the stroke.

* Emyr Pierce is Managing Partner of Emyr Pierce Solicitors in Rhiwbina, Cardiff, Western Mail Conveyancer of the Year, specialising in Domestic and Commercial Property. Contact www.emyrpierce.co.uk or email law@emyrpierce.co.uk