I am progressing with the sale of my maisonette in Rochford and the EA has just called to say that the buyers are changing their solicitor. The excuse is that the lender will only work with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a big named mortgage company only work with specific law firms rather the firm that they want to choose to handle their conveyancing in Rochford ?

Mortgage companies have always had panels of law firms they are content to work with, but in the last few years big names such as HSBC, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for more than 15 years.

Lending institutions point to the increase in fraud as the reason for the reduction – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to oversee. Banks tend not to disclose how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your buyers are not going to have any impact on this.

This question may be naive but I am new to the process as a 1st time buyer of a ground floor flat in Rochford. Do I receive the keys to the house on the completion date from my lawyer? If this is the case, I will appoint a High Street conveyancing solicitor in Rochford?

There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Conveyancing lawyers for you will transfer the purchase money to the seller's lawyers, and once they have received this, you should be able to collect the keys from the selling Agents and start moving into the property. This tends to happen early afternoon.

Last month we had a mortgage agreed in principle with . Rochford conveyancing practitioners were instructed. What is the average time that one could expect to receive a mortgage offer from ?

There is no definitive answer here. Have conducted the valuation? Have you advised as to your lawyers' details and checked that your lawyers are on the conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through.

I currently have a mortgage with for my property in Rochford. Conveyancing was finalised a year ago. If I am intending to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a buy-to-let mortgage or inform ?

must be informed of your intention before renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of ’s mortgage conditions. It may be that will permit you to let 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 directly. You need not do this via a conveyancing panel solicitor.

It has been 3 months since my purchase conveyancing in Rochford concluded. I have checked the Land Registry website which shows that I paid £150,000 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 asset 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.

What does commercial conveyancing in Rochford cover?

Commercial conveyancing in Rochford incorporates a wide array of services, supplied by regulated solicitors, relating to business property. For example, this type of conveyancing can cover the sale or purchase of freehold business premises or, more commonly, the transfer of existing business tenancies or the drafting of new leasing arrangements. Commercial conveyancing solicitors can also offer advice on the sale of business assets, commercial mortgages and the termination of leases.

Do online conveyancing organisations undertake everything a high street Rochford solicitor does or do I still need to retain a solicitor for the final stages for my conveyancing in Rochford?

If you choose an online conveyancer they should cover all the things your Rochford conveyancer will cover.