My wife and I are purchasing a 1 bedroom flat in Cathays with a mortgage. We would like to retain our Cathays solicitor, however the mortgage company says he's not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the mortgage company panel solicitors or continue with our Cathays conveyancing practitioner as well as pay for one of their panel lawyers to represent them. This feels very unfair; is there anything we can do?

No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your Cathays conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

My house in Cathays is up for sale and I have a buyer. Does my conveyancer need to be on the Co-operative conveyancing panel in order to deal with redeeming my mortgage?

Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Co-operative conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. It might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their specifications fairly frequently in recent years.

The estate agent has sent us the confirmation of our purchase of a new build apartment in Cathays. Conveyancing is daunting at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. Can you give me some examples of some of the questions asked in new build conveyancing.

Here are examples of a few leasehold new build questions that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in Cathays

Forfeiture - bankruptcy or liquidation must not apply under this provision. Please supply a car parking plan. If there are lifts in the building, please confirm that the owners of flats on the ground and basement floors will not be required to contribute towards the cost of maintenance and renewal. There must be mutual enforceability of lessee’s covenants. Where service of notices and proceedings can be at the property demised please confirm that this can be amended to include simultaneous services at the Lessees’ solicitors’ offices where the Lessee from time to time is not resident in the UK - such solicitors may be varied by notice in writing to the Landlord from time to time but otherwise will be as previously specified.

Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I put an offer in last month in what should have been a straight forward, no chain conveyancing. Cathays is the location of the property. Is there any guidance you can impart?

Flying freeholds in Cathays are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Cathays you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds diligently. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Cathays may decide that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.

I am using a search engine for the term on line conveyancing in Cathays it brings up numerous property lawyerslocally. With so much choice what is the best way to find the suitable conveyancer for purchase transaction?

The best way of seeking the right conveyancer is via personal recommendation, so ask colleagues and those you trust who have bought a property in Cathays or the local estate agent or financial adviser. Charges for conveyancing in Cathays differ, so it's a good idea to obtain a minimum of three fee estimates from different solicitors. Make sure that you know what costs in the quote includes.