As a first time buyer what is the most important number one tip you can give me regarding purchase conveyancing in March?

Not many law firms or advisers will tell you this but conveyancing in March and elsewhere in England and Wales is an adversarial process. Put another way, when it comes to conveyancing there is plenty of room for confrontation between you and others involved in the house moving process. E.g., the vendor, selling agent and even potentially a mortgage company. Choosing a solicitor for your conveyancing in March an important selection as your conveyancer is your adviser, and is the ONLY party in the transaction whose role it is to look after your legal interests and to protect you.

Sometimes a third party with a vested interest will attempt to convince you that it is in your interests to do things their way. For instance, the estate agent may claim to be helping by suggesting your solicitor is wrong. Or your financial adviser may tell you to do take action that is contrary to your conveyancers guidance. You should always trust your lawyer above all other parties when it comes to the legal transfer of property.

I am helping my sister sell her property in March. Does the solicitor order the energy assessment or do I organise this?

Following the abolition of Home Information Packs, energy assessments was retained a required element of selling a property. An energy assessment must be commissioned prior to the property being marketed. It is not a task that solicitors normally organise. If you are instructing a March conveyancing practitioner they may be willing to arrange EPC’s due to their contacts with reputable local providers

I am purchasing a property in March. An unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Solicitors conducting should look into this right? Will my lender Coventry BS be concerned?

Given that you are obtaining a mortgage with Coventry BS your lawyer must follow the formal instructions contained in Part two of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Coventry BS. The Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook sets out minimum conditions for solar panel roof-space leases, and conveyancers are required to report to Coventry BS where a lease fails to meet these conditions. The provisions relate to the installation of panels on properties nationwide and is not restricted to March.

After months of negotiation I have agreed a price on a house in March. My financial adviser suggested a conveyancing practitioner. I paid an on account payment of £150. Not long after, the solicitor called me embarrassingly acknowledging that they were not on the Santander 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 Santander 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.

Various internet forums that I have frequented warn that are the primary reason for hinderance in March conveyancing transactions. Is there any truth in this?

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) released conclusions of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not figure amongst the common causes of delays during the legal transfer of property. Searches are not likely to be the root cause of slowing down conveyancing in March.

Just had an offer accepted on a new build apartment in March. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build legal work.

Here is a sample of a few leasehold new build enquiries that you may expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in March

If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. Please supply a car parking plan. Where there is an Undertaking being granted there is the risk of forfeiture of the Headlease subject to relief if one or more of the Underlessees are willing to accept the original Head Lessee’s obligations as otherwise relief will be denied to the Underlessees. The only alternatives are the Head Lessor agreeing not to forfeit the Headlease or the Head Lessee guaranteeing to the Underlessees that it will not be in breach of the Headlease. Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision. Please supply evidence that the form of Lease proposed has been approved by the Land Registry.

I have been advised by numerous property agents in March to choose a conveyancer on your site. What’s the financial advantage for Estate Agents to offer your services over alternative conveyancing organisations?

We don’t make any commission for pointing buyers and sellers our way. We thought it would be too underhand to pay a commission because home movers will think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not getting any benefit too?’ So we decided to step away from that.