We are buying a 1 bedroom apartment in Boldon Colliery with a mortgage. We would like to retain our Boldon Colliery lawyer, however the mortgage company says he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the bank panel conveyancing practices or keep our Boldon Colliery and pay for one of their panel ones to act for them. This feels very unfair; is there anything we can do?

No, not really. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’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. A further alternative is for your Boldon Colliery conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

Why do I have to pay up front when it comes to conveyancing in Boldon Colliery?

Where you are retaining lawyers for conveyancing in Boldon Colliery your lawyer will ask you to provide them with funds to cover the the cost of the conveyancing searches. This will be the total of the cost of the Local Authority Search. If any down payment is as part of the sale price then this should be needed immediately ahead of contracts are exchanged. The final balance that is needed should be sent to your lawyer shortly before completion.

I used Arc property Solicitors a few years past for my conveyancing in Boldon Colliery. I now require my papers however cannot find the solicitor. What do I do?

You should contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracking down 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 Boldon Colliery 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.

I'm buying my first flat in Boldon Colliery with a mortgage from . The developers refused to reduce the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of additionals instead. The house builders rep advised me not to tell my conveyancer about the side-deal as it would affect my loan with . Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

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 am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have just been informed that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Boldon Colliery. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Boldon Colliery are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Boldon Colliery in which case you should be looking for a Boldon Colliery conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to conduct alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Boldon Colliery - A selection of Queries Prior to buying

If a Boldon Colliery lease has fewer than eighty years it will affect the marketability of the property. Check with your bank that they are content with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will almost definitely have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you will be required to have owned the premises for 24 months before you are eligible to exercise a lease extension. The answer will be useful as a) areas can result in problems for the building as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate if maintenance remain unpaid b) if the leaseholders have a dispute with the managing agents you will wish to have all the details