I am nearing exchange of contracts for my maisonette in Hampstead Garden Suburb and the EA has just telephoned to warn that the buyers are appointing a new property lawyer. I am told that this is due to the fact that the bank will only engage with solicitors on their approved list. Why would a major lender only deal with specific solicitors rather the firm that they want to select to handle their conveyancing in Hampstead Garden Suburb ?

UK lenders have always had an approved set of law firms they are content to work with, but in recent years big names such as HSBC, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for decades.

Lenders point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels. Some do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your purchasers are not going to have any impact on this.

Can I use your services to find a Conveyancing solicitor in Hampstead Garden Suburb even where I’m not buying or selling a house, for example where I intend to acquire an office in Hampstead Garden Suburb with a mortgage from National Westminster Bank?

Our search tool is predominantly utilised to get a quote from residential conveyancing solicitors in Hampstead Garden Suburb but we have listed at the end of this page some Hampstead Garden Suburb commercial conveyancing firms. You will need to speak with the solicitors directly to check if they are also authorised to represent National Westminster Bank

Are the BSA planning on creating a searchable register to to identify practices on the Norwich and Peterborough Building Society conveyancing panel for example in Hampstead Garden Suburb?

We have not been informed any plans on the part of the BSA to develop such a tool.

I decided to have a survey done on a property in Hampstead Garden Suburb ahead of instructing solicitors. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold element to the property. Our surveyor has said that some banks will not give a loan on this type of property.

It depends who your proposed lender is. Bank of Scotland has different instructions from Birmingham Midshires. Should you wish to telephone us we can look into this further with the relevant mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Hampstead Garden Suburb. Conveyancing will be smoother if you use a solicitor in Hampstead Garden Suburb especially if they are accustomed to such properties in Hampstead Garden Suburb.

We are about to acquiring a property in Hampstead Garden Suburb. Conveyancing is not yet done but we wish to keep the amount we are are buying for private from sites such as Zoopla. How do I ensure this is not revealed?

The Land Registry are legally bound to disclose price sold data on a register of the title for residential properties countrywide including properties in Hampstead Garden Suburb. The register of title is an open document, so HM Land Registry would be breaking the law if they failed to grant access to the register.

In essence you can make a request of HM Land Registry to hide the price paid entry yet the answer would be in the negative.