I am nearing exchange of contracts for my flat in Chipstead and the estate agent has just telephoned to warn that the purchasers are changing their solicitor. I am told that this is due to the fact that the lender will only engage with solicitors on their approved list. Why would a big named mortgage company only engage with specific lawyers rather the firm that they want to choose to handle their conveyancing in Chipstead ?

Mortgage companies have always had panels of law firms they are content to work with, but in the past few years big names such as Santander, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for many years.

Banks justify this action to a rise in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. Banks tend not to reveal how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your buyers are not going to have any sway in the decision.

My wife and I are acquiring a brand new apartment in Chipstead and my conveyancer is advising me that she is duty bound to the mortgage company to disclose incentives from the seller. I am nearing the developer’s deadline to sign contracts and I have no desire to prolong matters. Is my lawyer right?

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

What happens if my solicitor is suspended from the Bank of Ireland Solicitor panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Chipstead?

The first thing to point out is that, this is a very rare occurrence. 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 for a fee.

I purchased a semi-detached Edwardian house in Chipstead. Conveyancing practitioner acted for me and Bank of Scotland. I did a free Land Registry search last week and there are two entries: the first freehold, another for leasehold with the exact same property. I'd like to know for sure, how can I find out??

You need to review the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Chipstead and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they mortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with purchasers. You can also enquire as to the position with your conveyancing solicitor who conducted the work.

I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £195,000 and found one near me in Chipstead I like with open areas and station nearby, the downside is that it's only got 61 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Chipstead suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a lease with such few years left?

Should you need a home loan that many years will be problematic. Discount the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the premises for at least 2 years you can ask them to start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.