My wife and I are buying a leasehold flat in St Helier. My Conveyancer is not listed on the mortgage company approved panel. Am I still permitted to continue with my St Helier conveyancing solicitor even though they are not on the mortgage company panel?

Your options include

• Carry on with your chosen St Helier conveyancer but your bank will no doubt appoint a solicitor from their approved panel. The net result is additional cost together with likely delay.
• Appoint a new conveyancing practitioner to conduct the conveyancing, making sure they are on the lender conveyancing panel.
• Appeal to your solicitor to seek to join the bank panel

I am about to complete buying a house in St Helier but as a result of wreckage from a small fire at the property I have was able negotiate reparation from the owner of £3k in the form of a reduction in the price. This was going to be addressed as part of the conveyancing process however Bank of Ireland will not permit this. Should they have been approached?

Any lawyer being on a Bank of Ireland approved list is duty bound to advise Bank of Ireland of any amendments to the sale price. If you were to refuse your lawyer to report the price change to Bank of Ireland then they would have to discontinue acting for you. In addition, Bank of Ireland and you would have to appoint a new conveyancing practitioner for your conveyancing in St Helier.

We had appointed conveyancers based in St Helier on the Kent Reliance solicitor panel. They are now charging me a separate charge for dealing with the Kent Reliance mortgage. Is this an additional conveyancing fee set by Kent Reliance?

Provided it is contained in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your lawyer is entitled to levy a fee for this. This fee is not set by Kent Reliance but by your St Helier conveyancing practitioner. Plenty of firms on the Kent Reliance panel will levy an ‘acting for lender’ fee but plenty of firms incorporate it on their overall fee.

We are getting a further advance on our home loan from Aldermore as we wish to conduct alterations to our house in St Helier. Are we obliged to select a high street St Helier solicitor on the Aldermore conveyancing panel to deal with the paperwork?

Aldermore would not normally instruct a member of their conveyancing panel to deal with the formalities. If they do require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Aldermore list.

I'm spending time looking at houses in St Helier and I am about to put in an offer. Is it premature to have a solicitor in place? I intend to finance via a mortgage with Nationwide.

It would be advisable to commence your search sooner rather than later. After you have chosen your lawyer and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their details on to the EA. As you are seeking a mortgage with Nationwide, ask your prospective lawyers if they are on the Nationwide conveyancing panel otherwise they can't do the mortgage legal work.

I am buying a new build flat in St Helier. Conveyancing is a frightening process at the best of times but I have never purchased a new build flat before. What sort of enquires would be asked in new build conveyancing.

Set out below is a sample of a selection of leasehold new build enquiries that you can expect your new-build leasehold conveyancing in St Helier

Has the Lease plan been approved by the Land Registry and if not when will they be lodged for this purpose? Please supply evidence that the form of Lease proposed has been approved by the Land Registry. The Vendor must covenant to keep unoccupied units in good repair until long leases are granted therefore. Will the freehold then be transferred for a nominal consideration (not exceeding £100) to the Management Company?

I am thinking of appointing a conveyancing lawyer in St Helier for my house move. Is there any facility to see a firm’s record with the legal regulator?

One may search for documented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) decisions resulting from inquisitions started on or after 1 January 2008. Go to Check a solicitor's record. To find information about the period before 1 January 2008, or to check a solicitors record, telephone 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and 09.30 - 18.00 Tuesday. For callers outside the UK, dial +44 (0)121 329 6800. The regulator sometimes monitor call for training requirements.