My partner and I are planning to acquire a house in Greater Manchester and are in fact using a Greater Manchester conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our solicitor has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with a view to exchanging next week. Leeds Building Society have this morning contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our Greater Manchester lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?

When purchasing a property with mortgage finance it is conventional for the purchasers' lawyers to also act for the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel as you are at liberty to use your preferred Greater Manchester lawyers, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.

Can you help? My Greater Manchester solicitor is assuring me that she is duty bound toapply for Greater Manchester conveyancing searches becausethe firm are on the Lloydsapproved lawyer panel. Do I not have any options here?

Unfortunately both you and your lawyer have little choice here. As you are obtaining a mortgage with a lender your property 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 CML Handbook conditions . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Greater Manchester conveyancing searches.

Is it possible to switch firm as I have to select one who is on the Halifax conveyancing list. I was using a high street conveyancing solicitor in Greater Manchester five minutes from me but the firm is not approved by Halifax

We will our best to assist in finding you a conveyancing solicitor in Greater Manchester on the Halifax panel. Please note that the solicitors that we list do not pay us commission if you instruct them and are fully regulated by the SRA who regulate all conveyancing solicitors in Greater Manchester. In utilising search facility on this page, you can compare costs for conveyancing solicitors in Greater Manchester and throughout England and Wales.

In sourcing the world wide web for the term cheap conveyancing in Greater Manchester it reveals numerous property lawyersin the area. How do I determine which is the right conveyancer for my move?

The preferential way of seeking the right conveyancer is via trusted recommendation, so enquire of friends and relatives who have acquired a property in Greater Manchester or the respected estate agent or mortgage broker. Charges for conveyancing in Greater Manchester vary, so it's sensible to request at least three costs illustrations from different law firms. Be sure to seek confirmation what costs in the quote includes.

I own a leasehold flat in Greater Manchester. Conveyancing and HSBC Bank mortgage organised. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Greater Manchester who previously acted has long since retired. Any advice?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to incur the fees of a Greater Manchester conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that in any event, even if this is the legitimate landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Greater Manchester Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries before Purchasing

Are there any major works on the horizon that will likely add a premium to the maintenance costs? Does the lease contain onerous restrictions? Is the freehold reversion owned jointly by the tenants?