Me and my partner are intending to acquire a 1 bedroom apartment in Hampton Wick with a mortgage. We wish to retain our Hampton Wick lawyer, but the mortgage company says he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the bank panel solicitors or retain our Hampton Wick solicitor as well as pay for one of their panel firms to act for them. We regard this is unjust; is there anything we can do?

Unfortunately,no. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your Hampton Wick conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

IfI were to acquire a freehold homein Hampton Wick mortgage fee and have no survey and no conveyancing searches how much should I expect to have to pay for conveyancing in Hampton Wick?

Any savings you would make will be limited to the costs for searches. Your lawyer still got to do everything else - money laundering, communicating with your sellers conveyancer, SDLT return, register the property etc. A slight saving might be made by not having to register a charge however it will not be meaningful.

My wife and I are purchasing a house in Hampton Wick. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a conveyancer? At some point we will need to deposit money into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our money?

Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.

My bid for a property was accepted at auction in Hampton Wick. Conveyancing is needed. What happens now?

Given that you have now legally committed yourself to purchase you now have to appoint a conveyancing solicitor soon as you now have a pending deadline in which to complete the transaction. All auction property should have a bespoke auction set of papers. This will include most,if not all of the paperwork that your conveyancer requires. In the case of leasehold property the auction papers may contain a copy of the lease, management information and a sellers leasehold information form and other conveyancing paperwork pertinent to leasehold premises. You must pass this on to the solicitor working for you ASAP. Do make sure that your finances are organised to complete on the date specified in the contract.

I am due to exchange contracts on my flat. I had a double glazing fitted in June 2008, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's lender, Coventry BS are being problematic. The Hampton Wick solicitor who is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel is recommending indemnity insurance as a solution but Coventry BS are requiring a building regulation certificate. Why do Coventry BS have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?

It is probably the case that Coventry BS have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Coventry BS may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.

I purchased my apartment on 3 July and my personal details is yet to be on the land registry website. Should I be concerned? My conveyancing solicitor in Hampton Wick said it would be formalised in a couple of weeks. Are titles in Hampton Wick uniquely lengthy to register?

As far as conveyancing in Hampton Wick is concerned, registration is no quicker or slower than anywhere else in the country. Rather than based on location, timeframes can differ subject to who lodges the application, whether there are errors and if the Land registry must send notices to any 3rd persons or bodies. Currently roughly 80% of such applications are fully addressed within 12 days but occasionally there can be protracted delays. Registration takes place once the purchaser has moved in to the property so post completion formalities is not typically top priority yet if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your conveyancer could communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for the application to be prioritised.

I need to instruct a conveyancing practitioner in Hampton Wick for my home move. Is it possible to see a solicitor's record with the profession’s regulator?

One can read presented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) determinations stemming from inquisitions started on or after Jan 2008. Go to Check a solicitor's record. To find details Pre 2008, or to check a firm's history, ring 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 any week day save for Tuesday when lines open at 9.30am. International callers, call +44 (0)121 329 6800. The regulator may recorded telephone calls for training reasons.