I am five weeks into the sale of my flat in Foots Cray and the estate agent has just telephoned to advise that the purchasers are appointing a new property lawyer. The excuse is that the lender will only deal with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. Why would a major lender only work with certain lawyers rather the firm that they want to appoint to handle their conveyancing in Foots Cray ?
Banks have always had panels of law firms they are content to work with, but in the past few years big names such as HSBC, have considered and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have represented them for more than 25 years.
Lenders blame a rise in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been narrowed as a smaller panel is easier to monitor. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society claims that it is hearing daily from firms that have been removed from panels. Plenty of firms are unaware that they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyers' case. Your buyers are unlikely to have any impact on this.
I am under pressure from the owner of a property in Foots Cray to complete within four weeks. What can be done to accelerate the buying process?
First, If you are under time constraints to complete we would recommend that your solicitor is familiar with the location as they will benefit local connections and know-how. It is even conceivable that they may have conducted previousproperties in the same street. Therefore consider using a Foots Cray conveyancing firm. In addition, ensure that the conveyancing firm is on the on the approved list for your mortgage company. It is said that nearly one in five of Foots Cray conveyancing transactions are suspended or jeopardised after discovering a buyer’s lawyer was not on their mortgage lender’s panel. This can often result in the home move being held up by an average of 21 days. It is estimated that this issue affects in the region of one hundred thousand home moves every year. Most Foots Cray conveyancing practices can not represent certain mortgage companies so do check at the outset.
Can you explain why leasehold purchase conveyancing in Foots Cray costs more?
The conveyancing charges for a leasehold premises in Foots Cray is frequently higher when contrasted to a freehold transaction. This is due to the additional investigations necessary in liaising with the freeholder and managing agents to collate the evidence concerning whether the rent and maintenance fee have been paid and whether there are any significant expenditure in the near future on repairs or maintenance of the building.
I am told that my conveyancing solicitors will need to check that the building insurance for my purchase of a house in Foots Cray. My lender is The Mortgage Works
The Mortgage Works have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook. As of 6/11/2025, the requirements read as follows :
I need some expedited conveyancing in Foots Cray as I am under an ultimatum to exchange contracts in less than 2 weeks. A mortgage is not required. Can I decline from having conveyancing searches to save fees and time?
If.Given you are are a cash buyer you are at liberty not to do searches although no law firm would recommend that you don't. With plenty of history conveyancing in Foots Cray the following are examples of issues that can appear and adversely affect market value: Refused Planning Applications, Outstanding Fees, Overdue Grants, Unadopted Roads,...
I opted to have a survey done on a property in Foots Cray in advance of appointing lawyers. I have been told that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. The surveyor advised that some banks tend refuse to grant a loan on such a premises.
It depends who your proposed lender is. Lloyds has different instructions from Nationwide. If you e-mail us we can investigate further via the appropriate mortgage company. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Foots Cray. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Foots Cray to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.