I plan on buying an apartment in Gamston. My property lawyer is not on the lender solicitor list. Can I still use my Gamston conveyancing solicitor notwithstanding that they are excluded from the mortgage company panel?

Various options include

• Carry on with your preferred Gamston lawyer but your mortgage company will need to instruct a solicitor from their approved list. This will result in additional charges together with potential frustration.
• Get a new conveyancing practitioner to act in the purchase, ensuring that they are on the lender conveyancing panel.
• Convince your solicitor to do everything within their powers to get accepted on the mortgage company panel of solicitors

We are purchasing a flat and require a conveyancing solicitor in Gamston who is on the TSB approved panel. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a solicitor?

Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for TSB . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in Gamston.

My partner and I are close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our house in Gamston and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a risk of it being constructed land that was not decontaminated. Any high street Gamston conveyancer would know that there is no such problem. It does beg the question why the buyers used a nationwide conveyancing firm as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Gamston. Having lived in Gamston for three years we know of no issue. Is it a good idea to get in touch with our local Authority to obtain confirmation that there is no issue.

It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing firm already. What do they say? You must check with your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same illness)

Over the last few months I have been searching for a flat up to £195,000 and identified one near me in Gamston I like with a park and railway links in the vicinity, however it only has 61 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Gamston in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?

If you need a mortgage that many years may be problematic. Discount the offer by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of twenty four months you could request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor about this.

Are the Gamston conveyancing lawyers identified as being on the bank conveyancing panel, together with their details provided by the mortgage company?

Gamston law firm practices and firms conducting conveyancing in Gamston themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the lender conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from the mortgage company directly.