Me and my partner are buying a 3 bedroom apartment in Crowborough with a mortgage. We have a Crowborough solicitor, but the lender advise she’s not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the mortgage company panel solicitors or continue with our Crowborough solicitor and pay for one of their panel lawyers to act for them. We consider that this is unjust; are we not able to demand that the mortgage company use our Crowborough lawyer ?

No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’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 Crowborough conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

Do the conveyancing lawyers that you recommend conduct conveyancing in Crowborough by way of an attended exchange?

We do have a number of conveyancing experts carrying out 24hr exchanges. You should call us to get a fee calculation and details as to availability.

Having sold my house in Crowborough last March yet the purchaser is texting me to moan that their conveyancer is waiting to hear from mylawyer. What are the post completion sale legalities following completion?

After completion of your disposal your solicitor should send the transfer documentation and all additional paperwork to the buyer’s solicitors. Where relevant, your conveyancer should also confirm that the home loan has been discharged to the buyers lawyers. There is unlikely to be post completion tasks unique to conveyancing in Crowborough.

I'm buying my first flat in Crowborough with a mortgage from Birmingham Midshires. The builders refused to reduce the price so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The sale representative suggested that I not disclose to my solicitor about this side-deal as it may put at risk my loan with the bank. 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 have today had an offer accepted on an apartment in Crowborough and the broker that we are using recommended his solicitor. She quoted £1000 excluding VAT and 3rd party costs. Does this sound reasonable?

You should not rely on 1 quote. You should obtain like-for-like quotes for your conveyancing in Crowborough. Then select one that you trust and just as important, is on the approved list of the lender that you have applied for a mortgage from.