I am nearing exchange of contracts for my maisonette in Shortlands and the EA has just e-mailed to advise that the purchasers are swapping solicitor. The reason given is that the bank will only deal with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. Why would a leading lender only work with certain law firms rather the firm that they want to choose for their conveyancing in Shortlands ?

UK lenders have always had an approved set of law firms that can represent them, 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 worked with them for many years.

Mortgage companies blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been stiffened as a smaller panel is easier to maintain. Banks tend not to disclose 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. 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 purchasers are not going to have any sway in the decision.

Please help - my lawyer says that restrictive coveneant insurance is required on my purchase. What is the typical level of cover needed for conveyancing in Shortlands?

The right level of restrictive coveneant indemnity insurance depends on who your lender is. It would differ for example between Barclays and The Mortgage Works. Conveyancing lawyers as opposed to members of the public take out such insurances.

We previously instructed conveyancers locally in Shortlands on the HSBC solicitor approved list. They have just invoiced me a separate amount for dealing with the HSBC mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by HSBC?

Provided it is contained in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your conveyancing practitioner is entitled to levy a fee for this. This charge is not dictated by HSBC but by your Shortlands property lawyer. Some firms on the HSBC panel will quote an ‘acting for lender’ fee but many practices include it on their overall fee.

Having read lots of house buying guides, I note that they all recommend that you should get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Shortlands solicitor - who is on the UBS conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. is that correct?

UBS will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually UBS will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Shortlands surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.

Various internet forums that I have visited warn that are the main reason for hinderance in Shortlands house deals. Is there any truth in this?

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) has noted the determinations of a review by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature within the most frequent causes of delays during the legal transfer of property. Searches are unlikely to feature in any slowing down conveyancing in Shortlands.

I am purchasing a new build house in Shortlands with a loan from TSB. The sellers refused to budge the price so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The sale representative suggested that I not to tell my solicitor about the extras as it could adversely affect my mortgage with TSB. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

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.

Over the last few months I have been searching for a flat up to £305k and identified one round the corner in Shortlands I like with open areas and railway links nearby, however it only has 61 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Shortlands suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a short lease?

If you require a home loan that many years will be an issue. Reduce the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current owner has owned the property for a minimum of twenty four months you can ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this.