What happens if my solicitor is removed from the Nationwide Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Folkestone?

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.

I'm purchasing a new build house in Folkestone with a loan from Virgin Money. The sellers refused to budge the price so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The house builders rep advised me not disclose to my lawyer about the deal as it may affect my mortgage with the bank. Should I keep quiet?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer 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 on the look out for a flat up to £195,000 and found one near me in Folkestone I like with amenity areas and transport links in the vicinity, the downside is that it's only got 52 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Folkestone suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake buying a short lease?

If you require a mortgage that many years will likely be problematic. Reduce the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the premises for at least 2 years you could request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease term and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor concerning this.

How difficult is it to transfer to a new conveyancer as I need to instruct a firm on the Skipton Building Society conveyancing list. I was using a local conveyancing solicitor in Folkestone five minutes from me but he is not approved by Skipton Building Society

We will our best to assist in finding you a conveyancing solicitor in Folkestone on the Skipton Building Society panel. Please note that the conveyancers that we on the directory do not pay us a referral fee if you instruct them and are under regulation of the SRA who regulate all conveyancing solicitors in Folkestone. In utilising the find a conveyancing solicitor tool on this page, you can compare and instruct different solicitors and conveyancers both nationally and in Folkestone.

Is it best to instruct a Folkestone conveyancing practitioner based in the area that I am purchasing? We have a good friend who can conduct the conveyancing however they are based a couple of hundredkilometers drive away.

The benefit of a high street Folkestone conveyancing firm is that you can pop in to execute paperwork, deliver your ID and pester them if necessary. Having local Folkestone know how is a benefit. However nothing is more important than finding someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If you know people who used your friend and on the whole were content that should trump using an unfamiliar Folkestone conveyancing solicitor just because they are Folkestone based.