Having sold my house in West Cross last August but our buyer keeps telephoning me to say their solicitor needs to hear from mylawyer. What are the post completion sale formalities following completion?

Post completion of your house sale your lawyer should deliver the transfer deeds and all supplemental paperwork to the purchaser's lawyers. Depending on the transaction, your solicitor must also confirm that the legal charge in favour of the lender has been redeemed to the purchasers lawyers. There are no post completion steps peculiar conveyancing in West Cross.

We're in West Cross, First time buyers buying with a mortgage (lender is Coventry BS , and our solicitor is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel). How long should the conveyancing process take?

The fact that your lawyer is on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel is a help. It would almost certainly delay matters if they were not. However, no solicitor should guarantee a timeframe for your conveyancing, due to third parties outside of your control such as delays caused by lenders,conveyancing search providers or by the other side’s solicitors. The time taken is often determined by the number of parties in a chain.

When it comes to lenders such as Clydesdale, do West Cross solicitors have to pay an annual charge to be on the conveyancing panel?

We are not aware of any lender fees to be on their panel, although some do levy an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.

Can I be sure that the West Cross conveyancing solicitor on the RBS panel is any good?

When it comes to conveyancing in West Cross seeking recommendations is a sensible starting point. 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 lawyer handling your transaction.

I am buying a property in West Cross. One unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Kent Reliance have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?

Given that your lender is Kent Reliance your lawyer must comply with the formal requirements contained in Part two of UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Kent Reliance. The CML Handbook includes minimum specifications for solar panel roof-space leases, and lawyers are required to report to Kent Reliance where a lease fails to satisfy these requirements. The requirements relate to the installation of panels on properties in England and Wales and is not isolated to West Cross.

I completed on my flat on 14 August and the transaction details are still not on the land registry website. Need I be worried? My conveyancing solicitor in West Cross said it would be dealt with inside ten days. Are transfers in West Cross particularly slow to register?

There is nothing unique about conveyancing in West Cross registration formalities. Rather than based on location, timescales can differ according to the party submitting the application, whether there are errors and whether the Land registry have to notify any 3rd persons or bodies. As of today roughly 80% of submission are fully dealt with in less than three weeks but occasionally there can be longer delays. Registration occurs after the purchaser has moved in to the property therefore an expedited registration is not typically top priority yet if it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your solicitor should speak with the land registry and explain the circumstances.

I am purchasing my first flat in West Cross with a loan from Birmingham Midshires. The sellers would not reduce the amount so I negotiated five thousand pounds worth of fixtures and fittings instead. The estate agent told me not disclose to my solicitor about this side-deal as it will jeopardize my loan with Birmingham Midshires. Should I keep quiet?.

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.