We are planning to acquire a property and require a conveyancing solicitor in St Fagans who is on the Nottingham solicitor panel. 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 be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Nottingham . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in St Fagans.

I am thinking of refinancing my house in St Fagans, does my lawyer have to be on the Co-operative Conveyancing panel?

There is nothing to stop you using your solicitor, but Co-operative will insist on their interests being represented by a firm on their conveyancing panel. There is much more potential for delays and confusion with an additional lawyer added to the mix, and it will undoubtedly be more expensive too.

Me and my partner are purchasing a apartment in St Fagans. I might seem paranoid but how we can trust a conveyancer? At some point we will need to put funds into their account. What is the protection we have from them run away with our money?

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.

Is there a list of Nationwide panel conveyancers in St Fagans on the Council of Mortgage Lender’s Website?

No. There is no such directory service on the CML or Building Society Association sites. Very few banks make their panel listings available online. Where you are seeking to appoint a St Fagans solicitor on the Nationwide please make the most of our tool.

I recently had an offer accepted on a house in St Fagans. My mortgage broker suggested a conveyancing practitioner. I paid an advanced payment of £150. Shortly after, the solicitor called me to say that they were not on the Virgin Money 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 Virgin Money 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.

Do I need to take out insurance to cover chancel repairs when buying a residence in St Fagans?

Unless a previous acquisition of the property took place after 12 October 2013 you could assume that solicitors carrying out conveyancing in St Fagans to remain recommending a chancel search and or insurance against a claim.

Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my ground floor flat in St Fagans. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed, however I have just received a quarterly service charge demand – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should discharge the maintenance contribution as normal given that all rents and service invoices will be allotted as part of the financial calculations for completion monies, so you should recover the relevant percentage by the purchaser for the period running from after the completion date to the subsequent invoice date. Most management companies will not acknowledge the buyer unless the service charges have been paid and are up to date, so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

St Fagans Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries before Purchasing

What is the length of the lease? Its a good idea to discover as much as possible regarding the company managing the building as they will impact your use and enjoyment of the property. Being a leasehold owner you are frequently in the clutches of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to every day matters like the cleanliness of the common parts. Ask prospective neighbours if they are happy with them. In conclusion, be sure you understand the dates that the service charges are due to the managing agents and specifically how they are spending the funds. You should be aware if it is less than 80 years it will impact the value of the flat. It is worth checking with your lender that they are happy with remaining years on the lease. A short lease means that you will probably have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and it is worth discovering how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you will be required to have been the owner of the property for a couple of years before you are legally able to extend the lease.