I have just been advised by my estate agent that my Swansea City lawyer is not on the mortgage company Conveyancing panel. What can I do to be sure whether this is correct?

The first thing you need to do is to contact your Swansea City conveyancer. You lawyer should inform you what has happened. Where they are not on the panel they could put your in touch with solicitors on the approved list of lawyers for your bank.

Can conveyancing in Swansea City to be finalised in less than a month?

First, If you are under pressure to sign contracts it is highly recommended that your conveyancer is familiar with the area as they will benefit local relationships and knowledge. It is possible that they could have transacted previoushomes in the same road. Therefore consider using a Swansea City conveyancing solicitor. Second, double check that the conveyancing firm is on the on the approved list for your mortgage company. It is estimated that just under twenty per cent of Swansea City conveyancing transactions are delayed or derailed after finding out that a purchaser’s conveyancer was not on their banks list of approved solicitors. This can often result in the legal transfer of property being delayed by as much as 21 days. It is believed that this issue impacts in the region of one hundred thousand home sales every year. Most Swansea City conveyancing practices can not represent certain lenders so do check at the outset.

What does my ID and proof of funds have anything to do with my conveyancing in Swansea City? What am I being asked for?

Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering rules require solicitors and licensed conveyancers to verify the ID of the person or body they are dealing with prior to agreeing to accepting their conveyancing retainer. The Terms and Conditions that you are required to sign will no doubt stipulate this. Your lawyer also has obligations to obtain certain documents in accordance with the CML Lenders Handbook requirements last updated on 1st December 2014. If you are unwilling to provide identification documents, your solicitor would not be able to act for you.

My wife and I are intent on selling our home in Swansea City and according to the buyers it appears that there is a possibility that the property was constructed land that was not decontaminated. A high street Swansea City lawyer would know this is not the case. It does beg the question why the purchasers used a web based conveyancing outfit as opposed to a conveyancing solicitor in Swansea City. Having lived in Swansea City for 5 years we know that this is a non issue. Do we contact our local Authority to obtain confirmation that there is no issue.

It would appear that you have a conveyancing firm already. What do they say? You must enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same ailment)

The estate agent has suggested using their conveyancer for my conveyancing in Swansea City - Surely it’s advisable to just use them?

It is worth checking if the estate agent is recommending a lawyer or introducing to a property lawyer. There are plenty of Swansea City estate agents who recommend two or three Swansea City conveyancing firms purely based on those lawyers offering a great service.