I am nearing exchange of contracts for my maisonette in Northleach and the estate agent has just e-mailed to say that the buyers are switching property lawyer. The excuse is that the bank will only work with solicitors on their approved list. Why would a big named mortgage company only work with specific law firms rather the firm that they want to choose for their conveyancing in Northleach ?

UK lenders have always had an approved set of law firms that can represent them, but in recent years big names such as HSBC, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for decades.

Banks point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the pruning – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. Banks tend not to disclose how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms 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. The buyers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.

Are the Northleach conveyancing solicitors identified as being on the conveyancing panel, together with their details provided by ?

Northleach conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from directly.

We are getting a further advance on our mortgage from as we intend to carry out alterations to our property in Northleach. Are we obliged to choose a high street Northleach solicitor on the conveyancing panel to handle the paperwork?

do not ordinarily appoint firms on their approved list of lawyers to deal with the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the list.

I am currently in the process of buying my council flat in Northleach. I have a mortgage offer with . Conveyancing is not something I have any knowledge of. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should have one. Any advice?

It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with , you will need to appoint a solicitor on the conveyancing panel.

My offer was accepted on a house in Northleach on , valuation was booked five days later, all came back fine. Property lawyer retained, so the only thing outstanding was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to and chasing them on my offer, I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the conveyancing panel. Are entitled to hold back the Mortgage pending the lawyer being on the approved list?

Mortgage companies tend not to not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.

A friend recommended that where I am buying in Northleach I should ask my conveyancer to execute a Neighbourhood, Planning and Local Amenity Search. Can you explain what the purpose of this search is?

A search of this type is sometimes included in the estimate for your Northleach conveyancing searches. It is not a small document of more than thirty pages, listing and detailing significant information about Northleach around the property and the people living there. It includes an Aerial Photograph, Planning Applications, Land Use, Mobile Phone Masts, Rights of Way, the local Housing Market, Council Tax Banding, the demographics of People living in the area, the dominant type of Housing, the Average House Prices, Crime details, Northleach Education with plans and statistics, Local Amenities and other useful data concerning Northleach.

I used Stirling Law several years past for my conveyancing in Northleach. Now, I need my documents but the law firm has closed. What do I do?

You should call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Northleach of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously instructed, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.