I am 3 weeks into the sale of my maisonette in Crawley and the estate agent has just text me to advise that the buyers are switching solicitor. The excuse is that the mortgage company will only deal with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a big named lender only work with certain lawyers rather the firm that they want to select for their conveyancing in Crawley ?

Banks have always had panels of law firms that can represent them, but in the last few years big names such as Nationwide, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have acted for them for many years.

Banks blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the reduction – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. Banks tend not to reveal how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says 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. The buyers are not going to have any impact on this.

We are about to exchange contracts for a garden flat in Crawley. We have hit a stumbling block. Our mortgage offer with Alliance & Leicester expires on 7/2/2025 but the owners are insisting on a completion date of 11/2/2025. Can one extend the loan offer?

The best person to deal with your question is your lawyer who should calculate if they corresponding with the mortgage company, vendor’s lawyers, property agents or possibly all three taking into account the circumstances your house move as of today.

We are downsizing from our property in Crawley and according to the buyers it appears that there is a risk of it being constructed land that was not decontaminated. A high street Crawley lawyer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the buyers instructed a factory type conveyancing firm rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Crawley. Having lived in Crawley for 5 years we know that this is a non issue. Is it a good idea to contact our local Authority to obtain clarification need.

It would appear that you have a conveyancing lawyer already. Are they able to advise? You must enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same sickness)

I am 17 days into a freehold purchase having been recommend to conveyancers by the high street agent to carry out the conveyancing in Crawley. We are not happy. Can you help me find new solicitors?

A solicitor would have to be really bad to suggest changing them. Has your loan offer been issued? In the event that it has you need to make them aware of the new conveyancer and ensure the offer are re-sent. Your new conveyancer should be on the lenders panel to avoid escalating fees and delays. So that should be your starting point. The search tool should help you find a lender approved conveyancer for your home move in Crawley

Why can I not complete our conveyancing in Crawley on Easter Monday?

Because on completion the funds needs to be transferred electronically between the banks of the buyer and owner’s property lawyer and currently this can only take place on a business day. So you can't complete on a weekend either.