My partner and I are planning to buy a property in Chelmsford and have instructed a Chelmsford conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our solicitor has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report with a view to exchanging next week. Platform Home Loans Ltd have this morning contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Chelmsford solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?

When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is conventional for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the bank's conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Chelmsford solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.

Having sold my house in Chelmsford last October yet the purchaser is e-mailing daily to say his solicitor needs to hear from mylawyer. What should have happened following completion?

Post completion of your sale your conveyancer should forward the transfer documentation and all of the paperwork to the buyer’s lawyers. Where appropriate, your conveyancer should also evidence that the home loan has been discharged to the purchasers conveyancers. There is unlikely to be post completion requirements peculiar conveyancing in Chelmsford.

If you had a top tip for selecting a conveyancing solicitor in Chelmsford what would it be?

Do not opt for the cheapest Chelmsford conveyancing fees. You really do get what you pay for when it comes to property lawyers. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you go into the conveyancing with your eyes wide open.

Completion of my purchase has taken place for my property in Chelmsford. Conveyancing was satisfactory but I feel I should register my dissatisfaction about the lender. How does one go about formally complaining?

All lenders have complaints procedures. Your first point of contact should be one of the lender’s branches or the Customer Care Department at head office. Ordinarily complaints to a lender are resolved effectively and efficiently. However if you are not satisfied that the matter is not resolved you can write to Financial Ombudsman Service with full details of your complaint.

I can not fathom if my mortgage offer requires a lease extension. I have telephoned my Chelmsford building society branch on numerous occasions and was told it wasn't a problem and they would lend. My Chelmsford conveyancing solicitor - who is on the mortgage company conveyancing panel- called to say that they will not lend based on their specific requirements. Who do I believe?

Your conveyancing practitioner must follow the CML Handbook section two specifications for your lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the lender will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the bank to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years remaining.

I used Stirling Law a few years ago for my conveyancing in Chelmsford. I now require my papers but the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?

You should contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracing 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 Chelmsford of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously hired, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

I pay a service charge for my ground floor flat in Chelmsford. Due to losing my job and other issues I fell behind with remittance. The freeholders agreed a settlement schedule but there remains three thousand pounds outstanding at the current time.

I now wish to dispose of the property and I am worried this may hold me back if I have to settle the amount due in advance. I'd like to sell up and subsequently repay the arrears from the proceeds - is this achievable?

Your property lawyer will hopefully be in a position to negotiate with the management company, and agree with them whether or not they would accept settlement from sale proceeds. This is an example of why it might be good to use a property lawyer in Chelmsford as they may well enjoy an established relationship with the management company.