My wife and I are planning to acquire a flat in Northumberland Heath and are in fact using a Northumberland Heath conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Bank of Ireland have this evening contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Northumberland Heath lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. Please explain?

Where you are buying a property requiring a mortgage it is normal for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your bank and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Northumberland Heath solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.

Forgive me if this question is silly but I am unseasoned as a first time buyer of a two bedroom flat in Northumberland Heath. Do I collect the keys to the property on the completion date from my lawyer? If so, I will find a local conveyancing solicitor in Northumberland Heath?

There is no need to visit the lawyers office on the day of completion. Your solicitors will arrange to send the purchase money to the vendor’s conveyancers, and shortly after the monies have arrived, you will be called to receive the keys from the selling Agents and start moving into the property. This tends to happen early afternoon.

Can I be sure that the Northumberland Heath conveyancing solicitor on the TSB panel is any good?

When it comes to conveyancing in Northumberland Heath getting recommendations is a sensible start. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one which is cheap as chips. We would always recommend that you speak with the solicitor carrying out your transaction.

My fiancee and I are in the throws of viewing flats in Northumberland Heath and I am about to put in an offer. Should I already have a property lawyer appointed at this point? I intend to finance via a home loan with HSBC.

You should start obtaining conveyancing quotes from solicitors ASAP. After you have chosen your lawyer and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their contact information on to the estate agent. As you are obtaining a mortgage with HSBC, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the HSBC conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.

Will our lawyer be raising enquiries regarding flooding during the conveyancing in Northumberland Heath.

The risk of flooding is if increasing concern for lawyers dealing with homes in Northumberland Heath. Some people will buy a house in Northumberland Heath, completely expectant that at some time, it may suffer from flooding. However, leaving to one side the physical damage, if a house is at risk of flooding, it may be difficult to get a mortgage, satisfactory building insurance, or sell the property. There are steps that can be taken as part of the conveyancing process to forewarn the purchaser.

Lawyers are not qualified to offer advice on flood risk, but there are a various searches that can be carried out by the purchaser or by their lawyers which should figure out the risks in Northumberland Heath. The conventional set of property information forms sent to a buyer’s solicitor (where the Conveyancing Protocol is adopted) incorporates a usual inquiry of the vendor to find out if the premises has suffered from flooding. If the residence has been flooded in past which is not revealed by the owner, then a purchaser may commence a compensation claim stemming from an misleading reply. A buyer’s lawyers should also conduct an enviro report. This will reveal whether there is a recorded flood risk. If so, further investigations will need to be initiated.

I'm purchasing a new build house in Northumberland Heath with the aid of help to buy. The sellers refused to move on the price so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of fixtures and fittings instead. The sale representative advised me not to tell my conveyancer about the side-deal as it would jeopardize my mortgage with Nottingham Building Society. 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.

I am using a search engine for the term cheap conveyancing in Northumberland Heath it reveals numerous property lawyersin the vicinity. How do I determine which is the right solicitor for me?

The ideal method of finding a suitable conveyancer is via personal recommendation, so enquire of colleagues and family who have acquired a property in Northumberland Heath or the reputable estate agent or financial adviser. Fees for conveyancing in Northumberland Heath vary, so it's a good idea to secure at least four quotes from varying types of conveyancers. Be sure to secure confirmation that the costs are assured not to increase.