We were about to retain a conveyancing solicitor in Cheltenham recommended on your site but have come across some other fee calculations on the internet appear less pricey – how come?

One can find numerous firms promoting pretending to offer cut-price conveyancing, but supplementalcharges result in the closing fee markedly uplifted. Solicitors are duty bound to ensure charges contained in terms of engagement should be equitable and be applied The conveyancers that we list for conveyancing in Cheltenham set out all legal fees for the property you intend topurchase.

In what way does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in Cheltenham? Why is this being asked of me?

Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering regulations require solicitors and licensed conveyancers to check the identity of the potential client they are dealing with before they can accept their conveyancing retainer. The Terms and Conditions that you are required to sign should stipulate this. Your lender will also require certain documents to be viewed. If you are unwilling to provide identification documents, your conveyancer can not take you on as a client.

I am helping my niece sell her property in Cheltenham. Does the conveyancing solicitor commission an EPC or it is for the seller to coordinate?

After the abolition of Home Packs, EPC’s remained a compulsory element of moving property. An energy performance certificate must be commissioned prior to the property being marketed. It is not as aspect of the sale process that solicitors normally organise. If you are instructing a Cheltenham conveyancing solicitor they might be willing to arrange energy performance certificates given their contacts with reputable Cheltenham assessors

We previously appointed conveyancing lawyers located in Cheltenham on the Barclays solicitor panel. They have just invoiced me a separate fee for the legal aspects of the Barclays mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee set by Barclays?

Provided it is contained in their Terms of Engagement or Quote then yes your conveyancing practitioner may charge a fee for this. This charge is not dictated by Barclays but by your Cheltenham conveyancing practitioner. Plenty of firms on the Barclays panel will levy an ‘acting for lender’ fee but plenty of practices incorporate it on their overall fee.

My husband and I are in the process of viewing flats in Cheltenham and I am about to put in an offer. Is it premature to have a solicitor in place? I am planning to take a mortgage with Virgin Money.

You should start obtaining conveyancing estimates from solicitors ASAP. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their details on to the selling agent. As you are obtaining a mortgage with Virgin Money, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.

I'm purchasing a new build house in Cheltenham with a loan from Britannia. The sellers would not reduce the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of additionals instead. The property agent suggested that I not disclose to my lawyer about this side-deal as it will adversely affect my mortgage with the bank. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer 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'm remortgaging a flat in Cheltenham. I have found my conveyancer's company on the Law Society's list, but I can't find my conveyancer's name on the list. Should I be concerned?

Not all staff in the practice must be listed by the regulator. Provided there is a manager qualified to 'oversee' the work, the actual day-to-day activity can be undertaken by unlicensed staff.