I am one month into the sale of my ground floor flat in Barnard Castle and the EA has just e-mailed to advise that the purchasers are changing their property lawyer. The excuse is that the mortgage company will only engage with solicitors on their approved list. On what basis would a leading mortgage company only engage with specific lawyers rather the firm that they want to appoint for their conveyancing in Barnard Castle ?

Banks have always had panels of law firms they are content to work with, but in the last few years big names such as Yorkshire Building Society, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for decades.

Lenders point to the increase in fraud as the reason for the cull – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. Banks tend not to reveal how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Some do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your purchasers are not going to have any impact on this.

I know that there are debates on Chancel Insurance on online forums. Am I compelled to have this when buying a residence in Barnard Castle? or Apparently there is an ancient law that could mean that house owners residing in a parish church boundary will be compelled to contribute towards maintenance to the chancel within the church. Is this appropriate for conveyancing in Barnard Castle?

Unless a previous acquisition of the property completed post 12 October 2013 you can take it that lawyers conducting conveyancing in Barnard Castle to continue to suggest a chancel search and or chancel repair liability policy.

Taking into account that I will soon spend £400,000 on 3 bedroom house in Barnard Castle I wish to have a conversation with the lawyer regarding thehouse move ahead of instructing the firm. Is this something that you can arrange?

We could not agree more - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you speaking to the conveyancer who will be conducting your conveyancing in Barnard Castle.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - each client is unique individual, not a matter number. The solicitors that we put you in touch with believe that the fees you are provided with for your conveyancing in Barnard Castle should be the figure that you are charged.

We're new to the buying process - had an offer accepted, yet the estate agent advised that the seller will only move forward if we use their preferred conveyancers as they are insisting on an ‘expedited deal’. My instinct tells me that we should use a local conveyancer with experience of conveyancing in Barnard Castle

It is highly unlikely the owners are behind this. Should the owner want ‘a quick sale', alienating a motivated purchaser is counter productive. Try to communicate with the owners directly and make the point that (a)you are genuine buyers (b)you are excited to move forward, with finances arranged © you are unencumbered (d) you intend to proceed fast (e)but you intend to use your preferred Barnard Castle conveyancing solicitors - not the ones that will provide the negotiator at the agency a referral fee or meet his conveyancing targets pre-set by head office.

I have been told by many estate agents to expect 6-8 weeks for Barnard Castle conveyancing to complete.This was four weeks ago. The property information was only sent to my lawyer a few days ago so now does it countdown?

You should treat with caution of any conveyancing practitioner promising fast completion times. Instead ask the average timeframe to complete Barnard Castle conveyancing deals and whether they are happy to move towards an agreed target date for your house move in Barnard Castle