Me and my fiance are purchasing a 1 bedroom flat in Sea Mills with a mortgage. We like our Sea Mills lawyer, however the mortgage company says she’s not on their "panel". It appears that we have little option but to appoint one of the lender panel conveyancing practices or retain our Sea Mills solicitor and pay for one of their panel ones to represent them. We consider that this is unjust; can we not insist that the mortgage company use our Sea Mills lawyer ?

Unfortunately,no. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’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. Another option that might be available is for your Sea Mills conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

AssumingI were to acquire a straightforward homein Sea Mills for cash and dispense with a survey and no local authority searches how much should I expect to to save on my conveyancing in Sea Mills?

Any savings you would gain would be isolated to the disbursement for searches. Your conveyancing practitioner still got to do everything else - money laundering, communicating with the sellers conveyancing practitioner, SDLT return, register the property etc. A marginal saving might be made by not needing to register a charge but it will not be meaningful.

We previously chose conveyancing lawyers with offices in Sea Mills on the Barclays solicitor approved list. They are now charging me a supplemental fee for dealing with the Barclays mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee set by Barclays?

As unfair as it may appear, as long as it’s in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your lawyer can levy a fee for this. This fee is not dictated by Barclays but by your Sea Mills conveyancing practitioner. Numerous firms on the Barclays panel will quote an ‘acting for lender’ fee but many firms include it on their overall fee.

I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Yorkshire BS. I assume I don't need a Sea Mills conveyancer on the Yorkshire BS panel to remove the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.

If you have finished paying off your Yorkshire BS mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the Yorkshire BS mortgage from the register. Yorkshire BS, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:

1. but are not moving to another property
2. where Yorkshire BS has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
3. Yorkshire BS has instructed the Land Registry to do so

Intending to buy a house in Sea Mills. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Lender if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.

They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Sea Mills lawyer is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel.

Just had an offer accepted on a new build flat in Sea Mills. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build legal work.

Here are examples of a selection of leasehold new build questions that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Sea Mills

Please provide evidence that the form of Lease proposed has been approved by the Land Registry. Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision. If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. The Vendor must covenant to keep unsold units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. Will control of the Management Company (if any) be handed over to purchasers on completion of the last sale or earlier?

My husband and I are first time buyers - agreed a price, yet the agent told us that the owners will only move forward if we instruct their chosen solicitors as they need a ‘quick sale’. My instinct tells me that we should use a high street conveyancer who is familiar with conveyancing in Sea Mills

It is highly unlikely the owners are behind this. If they require ‘a quick sale', taking such a hostile approach to a motivated buyer is counter productive. Avoid the agents and go straight to the sellers and explain that (a)you are keen to buy (b)you are excited to move forward, with mortgage lined up © you are unencumbered (d) you wish to move quickly (e)however you will continue to instruct your own,trusted Sea Mills conveyancing lawyers - not the ones that will earn the estate agent a introducer fee or hit his conveyancing targets demanded by senior management.