I have given 2 months notice to my existing landlord and must leave my rented flat in Ely by the end of next month. Conveyancing for my house purchase is progressing. How realistic is it to complete in a couple of weeks as don't want to have to find temporary accommodation?

The normal practice is not to serve notice for your letting until exchange of contracts has taken place. If you have not already done so, contact to your conveyancer and request that they chase the owners solicitors, try to get a realistic time scale from them that all parties will look towards

Should conveyancers ask for money up-front when it comes to conveyancing in Ely?

If you are buying a property in Ely your lawyer will ask you to provide them with funds to cover the the cost of the conveyancing searches. Normally this is asked for to cover the fees of the conveyancing searches. If any deposit is payable against the purchase price then this will be asked for immediately before exchange of contracts. The final balance that is needed should be sent to your lawyer a couple of days prior to the day of completion.

I have todaybecome aware that Arc property Solicitors have been shut down. They carried out my conveyancing in Ely for a purchase of a leasehold flat 12 months ago. How can I establish that the property is registered correctly in the name of the former proprietor?

The easiest method to see if the property is registered to you, you can carry out a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Ely conveyancing specialists.

I'm purchasing a new build house in Ely with a mortgage from Santander. The builders would not move on the price so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The house builders rep advised me not to tell my lawyer about this side-deal as it would adversely affect my loan with Santander. Should I keep quiet?.

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.

My cousin has recommend that I appoint his conveyancers in Ely. Do I take his guidance?

No doubt the best way to find a conveyancing practitioner is to have recommendations from friends or relatives who have used the solicitor you're contemplating using.