Am I correct in assuming that the fact that my conveyancer in Wick is not on my mortgage company's conveyancing panel that there is a problem with the quality of her work?

That would more than likely be an incorrect assumption to make. There are plenty of plausible explanations. Just recently a report by the solicitors regulator revealed 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The most common reasons for removal are: (1) low volume of transactions (2) the solicitor is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. If you are concerned you should contact the Wick conveyancing firm and enquire why they are no longer on the approved list for your bank.

We're in Wick, First time buyers purchasing with a mortgage (lender is , and our lawyer is on the conveyancing panel). How long should the conveyancing process take?

The fact that your lawyer is on the conveyancing panel is a help. It would almost certainly delay matters if they were not. However, no should guarantee a timeframe for your conveyancing, due to third parties outside of your control such as delays caused by lenders,conveyancing search providers or by the other side’s solicitors. The time taken is often determined by the number of parties in a chain.

I'm purchasing my first flat in Wick with a loan from . The builders would not reduce the price so I negotiated 6k of additionals instead. The sale representative told me not to tell my lawyer about the deal as it would adversely affect my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

I need to find a conveyancing solicitor for freehold conveyancing in Wick. I happened to chance upon a web site which looks to be the ideal offering If it is possible to get all formalities completed via phone that would be preferable. Do I need to be wary? What should out be looking out for?

As usual with these online conveyancers you need to read ALL the small print - did you notice the extra charge for dealing with the mortgage?

I own a leasehold flat in Wick. Conveyancing was completed in five years ago. I have been told that I should not allow the the remaining lease term to get too low. Why is that a problem?

Wick leasehold properties are for a prescribed period - normally just under one hundred years when they are first granted. However a significant appartments in Wick were constructed or converted 25 or more years ago and so these leases now have under eighty years unexpired. This may seem like a long time however Banks, Building Societies and other mortgage institutions tend to need leases to have a minimum of seventy five years remaining to be mortgageable. This means that when you come to sell the property you will need a lease extension if you are nearing eighty years. To optimize your property value you should be considering whether to extend your lease well in advance of selling the property. Furthermore significant benefits to taking action before the lease reaches even 80 years as when the lease is less than 80 years the amount to be paid to extend starts to get a lot more expensive.