Please explain the implications if my lawyer’s firm is expelled from the Nationwide Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Bilston?

First, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit at a cost.

Have purchased a a terraced house in Bilston , how long should it take for the Land Registry to register my ownership? My Bilston conveyancing solicitor works at snail pace, so I want to be sure that my purchase is registered.

There is nothing unique about conveyancing in Bilston registration formalities. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timescales can adjust according to who lodges the application, whether it is in order and if the Land registry communicate with any interested persons or bodies. As of today roughly 80% of submission are fully addressed within 12 days but some can be subject to protracted delays. Historically registration takes place after the new owner has moved in to the property thus post completion formalities is not usually an essential issue but where it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your lawyers should communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for an expedited registration.

I'm buying a new build house in Bilston benefiting from help to buy. The developers refused to move on the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of additionals instead. The estate agent advised me not disclose to my lawyer about this extras as it would adversely affect my loan with Alliance & Leicester . Is this normal?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

I have been advised by two or three local property agents in Bilston to get a quote from a conveyancer using your seach tool. Is there a financial advantage for Estate Agents to recommend your lawyers ahead of another?

We refuse to make any commission for directing people in our direction. We found it would be just too difficult to pay a commission because a client could think, ‘How come the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not getting any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.

What do I do if I am not happy with the conveyancer who handled our conveyancing in Bilston?

Occasionally the level of service you receive is not as you expect, and is is a fact of life that sometimes matters do not go as planned. However there is recourse if you were unhappy with your conveyancing in Bilston. This varies from trying to resolve matters directly with them, through to reporting a lawyer to their regulator. If things still aren’t resolved you may consider enlisting the help of the Legal Ombudsman.