I am purchasing a property and need a conveyancing solicitor in Lowestoft who is on the Britannia conveyancing. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a firm?

Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Britannia in certain locations such as Lowestoft. We dont recommend any particular firm.

My fiancee and I are at the point of looking at houses in Lowestoft and I am about to put in an offer. Should I already have a conveyancer in place at this stage? I will be getting a home loan with Barclays.

It would be wise to instigate your search sooner rather than later. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and forward their contact information on to the selling agent. Given that you are taking out a mortgage with Barclays, make sure you remember to check that your lawyer is on the Barclays conveyancing panel.

I have a mortgage with Coventry BS for my property in Lowestoft. Conveyancing has been completed 12 months ago. Should I wish to rent out the flat and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Coventry BS?

Your original mortgage agreement with Coventry BS will provide that you need their approval before letting out your property as this is likely to be a breach of Coventry BS’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Coventry BS will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Coventry BS directly. You need not do this via a Coventry BS conveyancing panel firm.

I recently had an offer agreed on an apartment in Lowestoft. My mortgage broker pressured me to appoint their property lawyer. I paid an advanced payment of £200. A few days later, the solicitor contacted me to say that they were not on the Principality 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 Principality 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.

How does conveyancing in Lowestoft differ for newly converted properties?

Most buyers of new build or newly converted property in Lowestoft come to us having been asked by the developer to sign contracts and commit to the purchase even before the house is constructed. This is because developers in Lowestoft tend to purchase the real estate, plan the estate and want to get the plots sold off as they are building the properties. Buyers, therefore, will have to exchange contracts without actually seeing the house they are buying. To reduce the chances of losing the property, buyers should instruct conveyancing solicitors as soon as the property is reserved and mortgage applications should be submitted quickly. Due to the fact that it could be several months and even years between exchange of contracts and completion, the mortgage offer may need to be extended. It would be wise to use a lawyer who specialises in new build conveyancing especially if they are used to new build conveyancing in Lowestoft or who has acted in the same development.

My husband and I are 3 weeks into a residential purchase having been directed to a firm by the high street agent to do our conveyancing in Lowestoft. I am am extremely disappointed with the level of service. Could you you assist me in finding new solicitors?

They would need to be very bad to suggest replacing them. Has your mortgage been sent? If so you will need to make them aware of the new conveyancer and have the mortgage documents are re-sent. Your conveyancer should be on the lenders panel to avoid escalating expenses and frustration. That should be your first question of the new lawyers. The search tool can help you find a lender approved conveyancer for your home move in Lowestoft

What is the average conveyancing fee for conveyancing in Lowestoft?

The average fee last year for conveyancing in Lowestoft was just under one thousand five hundred pounds not including Stamp Duty and HMLR charges.