I am progressing with the sale of my apartment in Cumberland and the estate agent has just e-mailed to warn that the buyers are changing their property lawyer. The excuse is that the bank will only engage with property lawyers on their approved list. On what basis would a major lender only deal with certain law firms rather the firm that they want to appoint for their conveyancing in Cumberland ?

Mortgage companies have always had an approved set of law firms that can act for them, but in the past few years big names such as Santander, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for more than 15 years.

Lending institutions blame a rise in fraud as the reason for the pruning – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Some 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 unlikely to have any sway in the decision.

I require conveyancing for a flat in a fairly new development (6 years built) in Cumberland. The vast majority the appartments have already been disposed of. Do I need carry out the local searches for my conveyancing in Cumberland?

You would be putting yourself at risk in not carrying out Cumberland conveyancing searches. Without searches you have no clarity over flooding, environmental etc which may mean you walk away due to potential problems down the line. If you are buying mortgage free there is no legal requirement to have them, but we would seriously advise in the strongest possible terms that you have them. If speed and driving down costs are primary issues you should consider with your lawyer about the possibility of search insurance

What is the optimum way to investigate if the solicitor handling my conveyancing in Cumberland is on the mortgage lender’sconveyancing panel? I am looking to avoid the situation of having one lawyer for me and one for Britannia thus paying £175.00 in further conveyancing costs.

Please do take advantage of the search tool on this page. Please choose the lender and type ‘Cumberland’ or your preferred area and you will see numerous solicitors offices in Cumberland or near you.

My husband and I are FTB’s - agreed a price, but the selling agent advised that the vendor will only issue a contract if we instruct the agent's recommended solicitors as they want a ‘quick sale’. My instinct tells me that we should use a family solicitor accustomed to conveyancing in Cumberland

We suspect that the owner is not behind this requirement. If they desire ‘a quick sale', alienating a motivated purchaser is not the way to achieve this. Speak to the vendors direct and make the point that (a)you are genuine buyers (b)you are ready to go, with mortgage lined up © you do not need to sell (d) you wish to move quickly (e)however you intend to use your own,trusted Cumberland conveyancing lawyers - not the ones that will earn the estate agent a referral fee or hit his conveyancing thresholds pre-set by HQ.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £125,000 apartment in Cumberland on Tuesday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £420 for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Cumberland?

Cumberland conveyancing on leasehold flats often requires the purchaser’s solicitor submitting questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer these enquiries the majority will be content to do so. They are at liberty to invoice a reasonable charge for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some transactions it is in excess of £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in respect of administration charges, otherwise the invoice is technically not due. In reality one has no option but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I own a garden flat in Cumberland, conveyancing having been completed 6 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding properties in Cumberland with an extended lease are worth £190,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 invoiced every year. The lease finishes on 21st October 2086

You have 62 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £17,100 and £19,800 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.