My fiance and I are buying a newly converted flat in Lound with a homeloan from Britannia.We like our Lound conveyancing lawyer but Britannia advised that she’s not on their "panel". We have to appoint a Britannia panel firm or keep our local solicitor and pay for one of their panel ones to act for them. This seems very unfair; Can we not simply insist that Britannia use our lawyer?

Unfortunately,no. The loan offered to you is subject to its various provisions, a common one being that solicitors must be on the Britannia approved list. 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 lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Britannia

Me and my partner are purchasing a house in Lound. I might seem paranoid but how we can trust a solicitor? At some point we have to put funds into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our deposit?

Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.

How can we know in advance if a Lound conveyancing solicitor on the HSBC panel is any good?

When it comes to conveyancing in Lound getting recommendations is a sensible start. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one which is cheap as chips. We would always advise that you speak with the lawyer handling your transaction.

I am due to exchange contracts on my flat. I had a double glazing fitted in December 2010, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My purchaser’s mortgage company, Virgin Money are being problematic. The Lound solicitor who is on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel is recommending indemnity insurance as a solution but Virgin Money are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do Virgin Money have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?

It is probably the case that Virgin Money have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Virgin Money may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.

I purchased a renovated Georgian house in Lound. Conveyancing solicitor represented me and Skipton Building Society. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and I saw two entries: one for freehold, the second leasehold under the matching address. I thought I was buying a freehold how can I check?

You need to read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register for mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered owner of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Lound and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they remortgage they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with mortgage companies. You can also check the situation with the conveyancing solicitor who conducted the conveyancing.

My husband and I are new on the property ladder - had an offer accepted, but the estate agent advised that the owners will only issue a contract if we use the agent's recommended solicitors as they are insisting on a ‘quick sale’. We would rather use a local solicitor who is accustomed to conveyancing in Lound

It is unlikely the sellers are behind this. Should the owner desire ‘a quick sale', alienating a motivated purchaser is likely to cause more damage than good. Speak to the vendors direct and make sure they comprehend that (a)you are genuine purchasers (b)you are excited to move forward, with finances in place © you have nothing to sell (d) you wish to move quickly (e)however you will continue to instruct your own,trusted Lound conveyancing solicitors - not the ones that will earn their estate agent a commission or achieve conveyancing targets demanded by corporate headquarters.

I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Lound. Before I set the wheels in motion I would like to find out the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Lound - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title. For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

I acquired a basement flat in Lound, conveyancing formalities finalised February 1996. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar properties in Lound with a long lease are worth £176,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease runs out on 21st October 2105

With 80 years left to run the likely cost is going to be between £7,600 and £8,800 plus legals.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.