I am one month into the sale of my apartment in Earlsfield and the estate agent has just text me to say that the purchasers are changing their solicitor. The reason given is that the lender will only work with solicitors on their approved list. On what basis would a big named mortgage company only work with certain lawyers rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Earlsfield ?

Lenders have always had an approved set of law firms that can represent them, but in the past few years big names such as Nationwide, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for over 25 years.

Lending institutions blame a rise in fraud as the reason for the reduction – criteria have been tightened as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. No lender will say 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 impact on this.

Are you able to suggest a Skipton Building Society accepted Earlsfield conveyancing firm who can have us moved in within two weeks? Would it be better to use a high street Earlsfield solicitor or a national firm?

We can recommend some very good Earlsfield conveyancing firms. You can also walk up the high street in Earlsfield. Visit a couple of firms and request to see a conveyancing solicitor for a fee estimate. Mention your expectations together with the reasons and ask for an assurance on speed. Appoint the one that you trust.

Can your site be used to recommend a Conveyancing solicitor in Earlsfield even where I’m not buying or selling a house, for example if I want to acquire a shop in Earlsfield with a mortgage from TSB?

The service is mainly there to find residential conveyancing solicitors in Earlsfield but we have recorded at the end of this page a few Earlsfield commercial conveyancing firms. You should make contact with the solicitors directly to see if they can also act for TSB

Should my conveyancer be asking questions regarding flooding during the conveyancing in Earlsfield.

Flooding is a growing risk for lawyers conducting conveyancing in Earlsfield. Plenty of people will purchase a house in Earlsfield, completely aware that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, aside from the physical damage, where a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, satisfactory building insurance, or dispose of the premises. Steps can be carried out during the course of a house purchase to forewarn the buyer.

Lawyers are not best placed to offer advice on flood risk, but there are a number of searches that may be initiated by the purchaser or on a buyer’s behalf which can give them a better understanding of the risks in Earlsfield. The conventional set of property information forms sent to a buyer’s conveyancer (where the solicitors are adopting what is known as the Conveyancing Protocol) contains a standard inquiry of the seller to determine if the premises has suffered from flooding. If the premises has been flooded in past which is not disclosed by the vendor, then a buyer may issue a legal claim for losses stemming from an misleading answer. A purchaser’s solicitors should also order an enviro report. This should disclose if there is a recorded flood risk. If so, further investigations will need to be conducted.

I am buying a new build house in Earlsfield benefiting from help to buy. The developers refused to move on the amount so I negotiated 6k of additionals instead. The property agent told me not reveal to my solicitor about the deal as it will put at risk my loan with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.

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.