I am in the process of selling my maisonette in Ashton under Lyne and the estate agent has just telephoned to warn that the purchasers are swapping solicitor. I am told that this is due to the fact that the mortgage company will only engage with solicitors on their approved list. On what basis would a leading mortgage company only deal with certain solicitors rather the firm that they want to select to handle their conveyancing in Ashton under Lyne ?

Banks have always had panels of law firms they are content to work with, but in the last few years big names such as Yorkshire Building Society, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for more than 15 years.

Banks blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Some 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. Your purchasers are unlikely to have any impact on this.

My partner and I are buying a new build flat in Ashton under Lyne and my solicitor is informing me that she is duty bound to the lender to reveal incentives from the builder. The Estate Agents are hassling me to exchange contracts and I would rather not delay deal. Is my lawyer right?

You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your . A precondition to being on a bank panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.

Having sold my house in Ashton under Lyne last October yet the purchaser is e-mailing daily to moan that her conveyancer is waiting to hear from mine. What should my lawyer have done following completion?

Following your house sale your lawyer is duty bound to forward the transfer deeds and all additional paperwork to the purchaser's conveyancer. If applicable, your solicitor should also confirm that the mortgage has been redeemed to the purchasers lawyers. There are no post completion steps unique to conveyancing in Ashton under Lyne.

My husband and I are first time buyers - had an offer accepted, but the selling agent told us that the seller will only move forward if we appoint the agent's recommended conveyancers as they want a ‘quick sale’. We would rather use a family conveyancer with experience of conveyancing in Ashton under Lyne

We suspect that the owner is not behind this requirement. Should the owner desire ‘a quick sale', turning down a serious buyer is is going to put the whole deal at risk. Bypass the agents and go straight to the owners and explain that (a)you are keen to buy (b)you are excited to move forward, with mortgage lined up © you are chain free (d) you intend to proceed fast (e)but you intend to use your own,trusted Ashton under Lyne conveyancing lawyers - rather thanthose that will provide the estate agent a referral fee or hit his conveyancing thresholds pre-set by HQ.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my 2 bed flat in Ashton under Lyne. Conveyancing has not commenced, but I have recently had a quarterly service charge demand – Do I pay up?

The sensible thing to do is discharge the maintenance contribution as you normally would because all rents and maintenance invoices will be allotted on completion, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

Ashton under Lyne Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries before Purchasing

Where a Ashton under Lyne lease has fewer than eighty years it will affect the marketability of the apartment. It is worth checking with your lender that they are happy with residual term of the lease. A short lease means that you will most likely need a lease extension at some point and it is worth discovering how much this would cost. Remember, in most cases you would need to own the property for two years before you are entitled to exercise a lease extension. Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments? Best to be warned whether fixing the lift or some other significant cost is coming up to be shared between the leaseholders and will dramatically increase the the maintenance charges or require a specific invoice.