My fiance and I are purchasing an apartment in Cubitt Town. My Solicitor is not listed on the bank approved list. Am I still permitted to use my Cubitt Town conveyancing solicitor even though they are not on the bank list of approved lawyers?

Your options include

• Carry on with your preferred Cubitt Town solicitor but your bank will no doubt instruct a conveyancer on their conveyancing panel. The net result is additional cost together with potential interruption.
• Choose a fresh lawyer to act in the purchase, making sure they are on the bank conveyancing panel.
• Convince your conveyancing practitioner to pull out all the stops to get listed on the mortgage company panel of solicitors

My husband and I wish to acquire a purpose built apartment in Cubitt Town with a residential mortgage from Lloyds TSB Bank.We use our Cubitt Town conveyancing lawyer but Lloyds TSB Bank says he's not on their approved list of firms. We have to appoint a Lloyds TSB Bank panel firm or keep our local solicitor and fork out for a Lloyds TSB Bank panel lawyer to act for them. This seems very unfair; is there anything we can do?

No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its various provisions, one of which will be that lawyers will be on the Lloyds TSB Bank solicitor panel. Until recently, most mortgage companies had large numbers of solicitors 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 lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Lloyds TSB Bank

I can see plenty of information on this site regarding conveyancing in Cubitt Town but can you isolate your top tip for appointing the right conveyancer in Cubitt Town

We would encourage you not to base your choice on the cheapest Cubitt Town conveyancing costs illustration. You really do get what you’re paying 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 know exactly what you’ll have to pay in advance.

I've read lots of mortgage guides, I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Cubitt Town solicitor - who is on the Barclays conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?

Barclays will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Barclays will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Cubitt Town surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.

My offer on a property in Cubitt Town has been accepted, the owners do nevertheless have a tied purchase. The owners have offered on somewhere, however it’s not yet tied up, and have viewings of other flats booked. I have chosen a local conveyancing solicitor in Cubitt Town. What should be my next step? At what point do I apply for the mortgage with Santander?

It is normal to have apprehensions where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur expenses prematurely (home loan application is in the region of one thousand pounds, then valuation, Cubitt Town conveyancing search fees, etc). The first thing to do is ensure that your property lawyer is on the Santander approved list. Regarding the subsequent steps this very much dictated by the specifics of your case, desire for the property and on the state of the market. In a buoyant market many purchasers will apply for the mortgage with Santander and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they request their solicitor to proceed with searches.

How do I use your search tool to select a conveyancing practitioner in Cubitt Town on the authorised to act for my bank?

1st pick a bank such as Accord Mortgages Ltd, Bank of Scotland or Aldermore then type in your preferred area e.g. Cubitt Town. Conveyancing firms in Cubitt Town and further afield will then be shown.

I need to instruct a conveyancing lawyer in Cubitt Town for my remortgage. Can I see a solicitor's complaints history with the profession’s regulator?

You may find published Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) determinations resulting from investigations commenced on or after Jan 2008. Go to Check a solicitor's record. For information Pre 2008, or to check a firm's record, telephone 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and 09.30 - 18.00 Tuesday. For callers outside the UK, dial +44 (0)121 329 6800. The SRA could monitor call for training requirements.