We are buying a 3 bedroom flat in Bankside with a mortgage. We like our Bankside lawyer, but the mortgage company says he's not on their "panel". It seems we have no option but to use one of the lender panel conveyancing practices or keep our Bankside property lawyer as well as pay for one of their panel ones to represent them. We feel that this is unjust; can we not require that the lender use our Bankside solicitor ?
No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your Bankside conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.
I own a freehold house in Bankside but nevertheless charged rent, why is this and what is this?
It is rare for properties in Bankside and has limited impact for conveyancing in Bankside but some freehold properties in England (particularly common in North West England) pay an annual sum known as a Chief Rent or a Rentcharge to a third party who has no other legal interest in the land.
Rentcharge payments are usually between £2.00 and £5.00 per year. Rentcharges date back hundreds of years, but the Rent Charge Act 1977 barred the establishment of new rentcharges from 1977 onwards.
Previous rentcharges can now be redeemed by making a one off payment under the Act. Any rentcharges that are still in existence in 2037 is to be dispensed with completely.
I have paid off my mortgage with HSBC. I assume I don't need a Bankside solicitor on the HSBC panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Please confirm.
If you have finished paying off your HSBC mortgage, they may send you evidence showing that you have paid it off. Alternatively they may notify the Land Registry directly. The Land Registry need to see this evidence before they will remove the HSBC mortgage from the register. HSBC, and any evidence they send you, will determine the action you need to take. In cases where no conveyancer is acting for you and you have paid off your mortgage:
- but are not moving to another property
- where HSBC has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
- HSBC has instructed the Land Registry to do so
My offer was accepted on a property in Bankside on 8/5/2025, valuation was booked five days after, received a clean bill of health. Solicitor instructed, so the only thing outstanding was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to RBS and chasing them on my offer, I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the RBS conveyancing panel. Can the lender hold off the offer?
A lender would not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for RBS to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the RBS conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
I've digested plenty of mortgage guides, I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my local Bankside solicitor - who is on the TSB conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?
TSB will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually TSB will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own Bankside surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
My wife and I purchased a renovated Georgian property in Bankside. Conveyancing solicitor acted for me and Coventry Building Society. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and I saw two entries: one for freehold, another for leasehold under the exact same address. I thought I was buying a freehold how can I check?
You should assess the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Bankside and other areas of the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they buy they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with purchasers. You can also question the situation with the conveyancing practitioner who conducted the conveyancing.
I was advised by numerous property agents in Bankside to choose a solicitor on your site. What’s the financial advantage for Estate Agents to offer your site over and above a competitor’s?
We refuse to give any commission for pointing buyers and sellers in our direction. We found it would be just too difficult to pay a commission because a client could think, ‘Why is the agent getting a kickback? Why am I not getting any benefit too?’ We would prefer to grow our business on genuine recommendations.
My wife and I have today had an offer accepted on our 1st house in Bankside, and are about to get solicitors appointed. We have made use of the different comparison based websites and the fee estimates are from all over the England and Wales. Is it necessary to have a Bankside conveyancer local to the prospective new home? I am fine to do all the communicating electronically, but I assume at some stage we will need to attend the property lawyer's office to sign papers?
Generally there is no requirement to attend the office of your conveyancer, they can post any relevant contracts to you, which you can sign and return. Many home movers choose to use a locally based solicitor, but it is not a prerequisite for conveyancing in Bankside.