I do hope you can assist me. My Rufford solicitor is advising me that he is legally obliged toapply for Rufford conveyancing searches asthe firm are on the HSBCapproved lawyer panel. Is this really necessary?

You have limited options available to you. As you are taking a home loan with a bank your property lawyer has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the CML Conveyancing Handbook. Your conveyancer would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of your bank’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to follow the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook specifications . Even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out Rufford conveyancing searches.

What does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in Rufford? Why is this being asked of me?

Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering regulations require solicitors and licensed conveyancers to verify the ID of the potential client they are dealing with before they can accept their conveyancing business. The Terms of Engagement that you are required to sign should stipulate this. Your lender will also require certain documents to be checked. Where you refuse to supply identification documents, your solicitor would not be able to accept instructions from you.

My partner and I have organised the release of further monies on our home loan from RBS as we wish to carry out renovations to our house in Rufford. Are we obliged to choose a high street Rufford solicitor on the RBS conveyancing panel to deal with the paperwork?

RBS would not normally require a member of their approved list of lawyers to deal with such a matter. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the RBS panel.

I recently had an offer agreed on a house in Rufford. My mortgage broker pressured me to appoint their lawyer. I paid an on account payment of £150. Not long after, the solicitor contacted me embarrassingly acknowledging that they were not on the TSB conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?

You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the TSB panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.

After what feels like an age I have had an offer on a maisonette in Rufford accepted, but there is a chain. The vendors have placed an offer on somewhere, however it’s not yet agreed to, and have viewings of other flats booked. I have chosen a high street conveyancing solicitor in Rufford. What should be my next step? At what stage do I apply for the mortgage with UBS?

It is normal to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket too early (mortgage application is in the region of one thousand pounds, then valuation, Rufford conveyancing search costs, etc). The first thing to do is ensure that your property lawyer is on the UBS approved list. Concerning the next steps this very much dictated by the specifics of your case, attraction to this property and on the state of the market. In a buoyant market the majority of home buyers will apply for the mortgage with UBS and pay for the valuation and only if it was satisfactory would they request their property lawyer to move forward with searches.

I'm buying my first flat in Rufford with the aid of help to buy. The builders would not budge the price so I negotiated £7000 of fixtures and fittings instead. The house builders rep told me not inform my solicitor about this deal as it may 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.

My husband and I are first time buyers - had an offer accepted, but the selling agent informed us that the vendor will only move forward if we use the agent's recommended lawyers as they need a ‘quick sale’. We would rather use a local conveyancer used to conveyancing in Rufford

It is highly unlikely the vendors are driving this. Should the seller desire ‘a quick sale', alienating a genuine purchaser is likely to cause more damage than good. Bypass the agents and go straight to the sellers and make sure they comprehend that (a)you are keen to buy (b)you are excited to move forward, with finances arranged © you have nothing to sell (d) you wish to move quickly (e)but you intend to appoint your preferred Rufford conveyancing lawyers - rather thanthose that will earn the negotiator at the agency a referral fee or hit his conveyancing targets demanded by corporate headquarters.