We are buying a house and need a conveyancing solicitor in Greater Manchester who is on the Skipton solicitor panel. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a 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 Skipton . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in Greater Manchester.

I'm the single recipient of my late mum's estate and I have everything in my name now, including the my former home in Greater Manchester. Conveyancing formalities meant that the Land Registry date was in August. I plan to dispose of the house. I do know about the CML six month 'rule', meaning my property ownership may be treated the same way as though I had purchased the house in August. Will no one buy the property for half a year?

The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ handbook mandates solicitors to: "report to us immediately if the owner or registered proprietor has been registered for less than six months." By the strict wording you might be caught by that. How practical a view lenders take of it, depend on the bank as this obligation principally exists to pick up on subsales or the flipping of property.

Intending to buy a maisonette in Greater Manchester. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Building Society if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.

They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Greater Manchester lawyer is on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel.

I have finally had an offer on a maisonette in Greater Manchester accepted, but there is a chain. The sellers have offered on on an apartment, but it’s not been accepted yet, and have viewings of other apartments in the pipeline. I have chosen a high street conveyancing solicitor in Greater Manchester. What should be my next step? When should I get the mortgage application with Santander started?

It is usual to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to incur costs prematurely (home loan application is approx one thousand pounds, then valuation, Greater Manchester conveyancing search costs, etc). The first course of action is to check that your solicitor is on the Santander approved list. Concerning the next stages this very much depends on the uniqueness of your case, desire for the property and on the state of the market. During a hot market some buyers will apply for a home loan with Santander and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they ask their lawyer to press on with searches.

I have been advised by a number of selling agents in Greater Manchester to choose a conveyancer on your site. What’s the financial advantage for Estate Agents to promote your site over another?

We refuse to make any commission for directing people our way. We found it would be just too difficult a fee as home movers will think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not receiving any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Greater Manchester. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

Greater Manchester Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should ask before buying

Are any of leasehold owners in arrears of their service charge payments? How much is the ground rent and service charge? The answer will be useful as a) areas could cause problems for the building as the communal areas may begin to deteriorate if repairs are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have an issue with the running of the building you will need to know about it

How much experience do your Greater Manchester conveyancing solicitors have with Help To Buy, Shared Equity and similar schemes?

Greater Manchester conveyancing lawyers help thousands of people move home every year and supported lots of clients through the Help To Buy scheme. The chances are that whatever makes your case unique Greater Manchester conveyancers have worked on recent similar cases.