My wife and I are acquiring a newly built duplex in Derbyshire and my lawyer is informing me that she has to the bank to disclose incentives from the builder. The Estate Agents are hassling me to exchange contracts and my preference is not to prolong deal. Is my lawyer right?

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

We are due to move property in December. Will my conveyancing solicitor communicate with the removal company on the completion day. On a separate note, can you suggest a removal company in Derbyshire. Conveyancing lawyer was organised before I stumbled across this page.

On the afternoon of completion you can collect the keys from the estate agent however this should only take place once the sellers conveyancers advise the agent that they acknowledge receipt of the completion payment and the keys can be handed over. You should inform the removal men that you are ready to move in. As a matter of policy we do not recommend a specific removal company but can assist you in locating a residential property solicitor in Derbyshire or a lawyer that specialises in conveyancing in Derbyshire.

We are buying a end of terrace house in Derbyshire. We would like to convert the garage to an office at the property.Will the conveyancing process involve checks to determine if these works are allowed?

Your property lawyer will check the deeds as conveyancing in Derbyshire can on occasion reveal restrictions in the title deeds which restrict categories of changes or need the consent of a 3rd party. Many extensions require local authority planning permissions and approval under the building regulations. Many locations are designated conservation areas and special planning restrictions apply which frequently prevent or impact extensions. You should check these things with a surveyor before you commit yourself to a purchase.

Is it the case that all Derbyshire solicitor practices on the HSBC conveyancing panel are overseen by the SRA?

As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the HSBC conveyancing panel they would need to be regulated by the SRA. The majority of lenders do list licenced conveyancers on their panel and in such a situation the firms would be overseen by the CLC.

I was pointed in your direction by a couple of local selling agents in Derbyshire to choose a property lawyer on your site. What’s the financial upside for Estate Agents to market your lawyers ahead of alternative conveyancing organisations?

We don’t make any commission for pointing buyers and sellers to this site. We thought it would be too underhand to pay a commission because members of the public would think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why aren’t I getting any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.

In searching the world wide web for the words cheap conveyancing in Derbyshire it shows results of numerous property lawyersin the vicinity. With so much choice what is the best way to find the right conveyancing solicitor for me?

The best way of choosing the right conveyancer is via personal recommendation, so seek the counsel of friends and relatives who have purchased a property in Derbyshire or a respected estate agent or mortgage broker. Charges for conveyancing in Derbyshire differ, so it's a good idea to obtain a minimum of four estimates from different law firms. Dont forget to clarify that the fees are fixed.

My father-in-law mentioned that before selecting a conveyancing lawyer they must be approved by your bank. I am new to the process but I have an offer in principle from Virgin Money and I already have a family conveyancing lawyer in Derbyshire in place. Does Birmingham Midhshires require an approved conveyancer to be selected? If so, where do I find that list so I can pick a conveyancing lawyer in Derbyshire?

You should use a solicitor that is on the Birmingham Midhshires panel. Simply telephone your chosen Derbyshire conveyancing solicitor to check if they are on the Birmingham Midhshires panel. If they are not approved you have numerous choices open to you here:

• Carry on with your existing Derbyshire solicitor but Birmingham Midhshires will no doubt use a lawyer on their approved list. The net impact is additional charges and potential interruption.
• Choose a new property lawyer to conduct the conveyancing, making sure they are on the Birmingham Midhshires conveyancing panel.
• Convince your property lawyer to apply to join the mortgage company panel.