We are buying a 2 bedroom flat in Ivybridge with a mortgage. We have a Ivybridge conveyancer, however the bank says she’s not on their "panel". It appears that we have little choice but to appoint one of the mortgage company panel conveyancing practices or keep our Ivybridge conveyancer and pay for one of their panel lawyers to act for them. This feels very unfair; can we not demand that the lender use our Ivybridge conveyancer ?

No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the bank’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your Ivybridge conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

Is it necessary during the course of the conveyancing process to attend the offices of the solicitor to sign the legal charge? If so, I will instruct a firm who offer conveyancing in Ivybridge so that I can pop in to their offices if necessary.

As opposed to 12 years ago, most mortgage companies no longer oblige their conveyancing panel lawyer to witness the borrowers signature. You will still be obliged to supply identification documents and there are still manifest advantages to choosing a locally based practitioner, in your situation a conveyancing solicitor in Ivybridge.

This question may be naive but I am new to the process as FTB of a two bedroom flat in Ivybridge. Do I collect the keys to the house on completion from my conveyancer? If this is the case, I will instruct a local conveyancing solicitor in Ivybridge?

There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Your solicitors will arrange to send the purchase money to the owner’s lawyers, and once they have received this, you should be able to receive the keys from the property Agents and start moving into the property. Usually this occurs early afternoon.

My conveyancer has informed me that absentee landlord insurance is required on my purchase. What is the typical level of cover needed for conveyancing in Ivybridge?

The right level of absentee landlord indemnity insurance should be dictated by who your lender. It would differ for example between HSBC Bank and Bank of Scotland. Conveyancing solicitors as opposed to borrowers take out such insurances.

I had an offer accepted on an apartment in Ivybridge on 9/7/2025, valuation was booked 4 days after, all came back fine. Solicitor instructed, so all that was missing was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to UBS and chasing them on my offer, I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the UBS conveyancing panel. Can the lender hold off the offer?

Mortgage companies tend not to not issue a mortgage until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for UBS to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the UBS conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.

It has been 4 months following my purchase conveyancing in Ivybridge took place. I have checked the Land Registry website which shows that I paid £200,000 when infact I paid £180,000. Why the discrepancy?

The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the premises from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.

Can a conveyancer remove a name from the title of my property in Ivybridge ?

Extracting or adding someone to the title of your property is relatively straightforward. You’ll need to appoint a conveyancer to discuss your legal rights before you can proceed with a transfer of property. Contact us to book a free consultation with one a conveyancer