I am in the process of selling my home in Pitsea and the EA has just called to warn that the purchasers are changing their law firm. The excuse is that the mortgage company will only work with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a major lender only deal with certain law firms rather the firm that they want to select to handle their conveyancing in Pitsea ?

Lenders have always had panels of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the past few years big names such as HSBC, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for many years.

Lenders attribute this action to a rise in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to keep an eye on. Banks tend not to reveal 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 buyers are not going to have any sway in the decision.

Can the conveyancing lawyers that you recommend execute auction conveyancing in Pitsea?

We know of a number of auction solicitors we can put you in touch with those specialising in auction conveyancing. Pitsea is just one of hundreds of locations where our lawyers are based.

Are the Pitsea conveyancing solicitors identified as being on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel, together with their details provided by Yorkshire BS?

Pitsea conveyancing firms themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from Yorkshire BS directly.

Please help - my lawyer advises that missing deeds insurance is required on my purchase. What is the level of cover for Pitsea conveyancing?

The right level of missing deeds indemnity insurance should be dictated by who your lender. It would differ for example between HSBC Bank and Bank of Scotland. Conveyancing practitioners as opposed to borrowers take out such policies.

is it true that all Pitsea solicitor firms on the Nationwide conveyancing panel are overseen by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority?

As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the Nationwide conveyancing panel they would need to be governed by the SRA. The majority of lenders do list licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such organisation would be regulated by the CLC.

I can not fathom if my mortgage offer requires a lease extension. I have called into my local Pitsea building society branch on numerous occasions and was told it does not affect the mortgage offer and they would lend. My Pitsea conveyancing solicitor - who is on the lender conveyancing panel- telephoned and was told they refuse to lend based on their UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook minimum lease term requirements. I have no idea who is right.

Your property lawyer has to comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook section two provisions for your bank. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the mortgage company will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the mortgage company to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years remaining.

What will a local search tell me concerning the house we're buying in Pitsea?

Pitsea conveyancing often starts with the ordering local authority searches directly from your local Authority or through a personal search company such as Searches UK The local search plays an important part in most Pitsea conveyancing purchase; that is if you don’t want any nasty surprises after you move into your new home. The search should reveal data on, amongst other things, details on planning applications applicable to the premises (whether granted or refused), building control history, any enforcement action, restrictions on permitted development, nearby road schemes, contaminated land and radon gas; in all a total of 13 topic areas.