We are buying a newly constructed flat in Penllergaer and my conveyancer is advising me that she has to the lender to reveal incentives from the builder. I am under pressure to exchange and I would rather not prolong the conveyancing. Is my lawyer right?

You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your conveyancing practitioner. A precondition to being on a lender panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.

We are selling our home in Penllergaer. Does the property lawyer have to be required to be on the Aldermore conveyancing panel in order to deal with repayment of my mortgage?

Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Aldermore 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 panel criteria fairly frequently in recent years.

There is lots of information on this site concerning conveyancing in Penllergaer but what is your top tip for finding the right conveyancer in Penllergaer

It would be unwise to be swayed by the cheapest Penllergaer conveyancing costs illustration. You really do get what you pay for when it comes to property lawyers. A cheap quote may mean that the conveyancing solicitor is handling a lot of jobs at one time and you won’t get the quality of service and the attention that you need. It is, however, wise to use a conveyancer who has a fixed fee on a no sale, no fee basis. This way, you go into the conveyancing with your eyes wide open.

We expect to receive a OIP from Nottingham this week so we know how much we could potentially offer as otherwise we are dependent on web based calculators (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do Nottingham recommend any Penllergaer solicitors on the Nottingham conveyancing panel, or is it better to find our own lawyer?

You will need to appoint Penllergaer solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Nottingham conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and Nottingham through the process.

I am currently in the process of buying my council flat in Penllergaer. I have a mortgage offer with Yorkshire BS. Conveyancing is new to me. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should use one. Any advice?

It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with Yorkshire BS, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel.

I am purchasing a property and the solicitor has referenced Chancel Repair to which the house may be obligated to contribute to given it’s proximity to the area of such a church. She has recommended insurance. Is this really appropriate for conveyancing in Penllergaer

Unless a previous acquisition of the house took place after 12 October 2013 you can expect conveyancing practitioners delivering conveyancing in Penllergaer to remain encouraging a chancel search and or chancel repair liability policy.

I'm buying a new build house in Penllergaer with the aid of help to buy. The developers would not budge the amount so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The house builders rep suggested that I not to tell my conveyancer about this deal as it may adversely affect my mortgage with the lender. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

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.