Please help. My Gravesend solicitor is assuring me that she is duty bound toconduct Gravesend conveyancing searches asthe firm are on the Lloydssolicitor panel. These Gravesend checks cost a lot of money can this be avoided?

Unfortunately both you and your lawyer have little choice here. Given that you are taking out a loan with a bank your lawyer has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the CML Conveyancing Handbook. Your solicitor would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of your bank’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook conditions . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Gravesend conveyancing searches.

We are looking to buy a property and require a conveyancing solicitor in Gravesend who is on the Co-operative approved panel. Can you recommend a local conveyancing firm?

Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Co-operative . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in Gravesend.

I am assisting my niece sell her house in Gravesend. Does the conveyancing solicitor arrange an energy assessment or it is for the owner to coordinate?

After the abolition of Home Information Packs, energy performance certificates remained a compulsory part of selling a property. An EPC must be to hand prior to the property being put on the market. This is not a task that conveyancers ordinarily organise. If you are using a Gravesend conveyancing solicitor they may be able to arrange EPC’s given their contacts with long established local energy assessors

Does a directory service exist listing Clydesdale panel conveyancers in Gravesend on the Building Society Association’s Website?

No. There is no such facility on the Council of Mortgage Lenders or Building Society Association sites. Very few banks make their panel listings open the public online. Where you are in need of a Gravesend property lawyer on the Clydesdale please make the most of our tool.

I recently had an offer accepted on a house in Gravesend. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their lawyer. I paid an advanced payment of £175. A few days later, the conveyancer called me sheepishly admitting that they were not on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?

You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Kent Reliance panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.

I bought my flat on 7 August and my personal details is not yet on the land registry website. Need I be worried? My conveyancing solicitor in Gravesend expressed confidence that it should be recorded inside ten days. Are properties in Gravesend uniquely lengthy to register?

As far as conveyancing in Gravesend registration is no faster or slower than anywhere else in England and Wales. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timeframes can vary subject to who lodges the application, whether there are errors and whether the Land registry must send notices to any interested persons or bodies. As of today roughly 80% of such applications are completed in less than three weeks but occasionally there can be extensive delays. Registration takes place after the purchaser is living at the premises therefore an expedited registration is not typically an essential issue yet where there is a degree of urgency associated with the registration then you or your lawyers must communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for the application to be prioritised.

My wife and I have recently appointed a conveyancing solicitor in Gravesend. I I would like to check if they are on the lender's approved list of lawyers. Can you help?

It’s a good idea call the lawyer to enquire if they are on the bank's panel. If that does not help call us and we can investigate and revert. Should the firm not be on the lender panel we can certainly arrange a specialist conveyancing solicitor in Gravesend on the approved list for your lender.