My wife and I are hoping to acquire a home in Macclesfield and have instructed a Macclesfield conveyancing practice. Within the past 48 hours our lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. TSB have this afternoon contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Macclesfield conveyancer is not on their conveyancing panel. Is this a problem?

When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is usual for the purchasers' lawyers to also represent the purchaser's lender. 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 Accreditation 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 lawyers to represent them. You don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Macclesfield solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.

I had intended to instruct a property lawyer in Macclesfield for our house move. Our broker has since notified us that our mortgage lenders Aldermore won't deal with them. Surely this is unduly restrictive?

Mortgage Companies normally imposes restrictions either the category or the number of conveyancing firms on their approved list of lawyers. Typical examples of such criteria being that a law practice must not be a sole practitioner. In addition to restricting the profile of firm, a few lenders have decided to limit the amount of firms they permit to act for them. Be aware that Aldermore have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any member of Aldermore Conveyancer Panel. Mortgage fraud was a key driver in the rationalisation of conveyancing panels since 2008 even though there are differing views about the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Figures from the Land Registry indicate that thousands of law firms, including some in or near Macclesfield only carry out very few conveyances a year.

I can not fathom if my mortgage offer obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have called into my local Macclesfield building society branch on a couple of occasions and was told it wasn't an issue and they would lend. My Macclesfield conveyancing solicitor - who is on the bank conveyancing panel- called to say that they refuse to lend based on their specific requirements. Who do I believe?

As long as the lawyer is on the mortgage company approved list, they must comply with the CML Handbook requirements for the lender. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the mortgage company will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the bank to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years remaining.

After much negotiation I have agreed a price on an apartment in Macclesfield. My mortgage broker pressured me to appoint their property lawyer. I paid an advanced payment of £200. Soon after, the conveyancing practitioner contacted me sheepishly admitting that they were not on the UBS 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 UBS 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.

Intending to buy a maisonette in Macclesfield. 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 Barclays 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 Macclesfield conveyancing practitioner is on the Barclays conveyancing panel.

Is it necessary to take out insurance to cover chancel repairs when buying a residence in Macclesfield?

Unless a previous purchase of the property completed post 12 October 2013 you can take it that lawyers delivering conveyancing in Macclesfield to remain encouraging a chancel search and or chancel repair liability policy.

My partner and I may need to let out our Macclesfield garden flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Macclesfield conveyancing practice in 2001 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to seek any advice as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Macclesfield do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord is not entitled to unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience dictates that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting consent.

I purchased a 2 bed flat in Macclesfield, conveyancing formalities finalised half a dozen years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Comparable properties in Macclesfield with over 90 years remaining are worth £176,000. The ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease terminates on 21st October 2106

You have 80 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £7,600 and £8,800 plus legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to supply the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.