We are soon to complete buying a house in Clapton but as a result of damage from some water damage at the property I have managed to agree reparation from the current proprietors in the sum of £2k in the form of a adjustment in the price. This was going to be dealt with as part of the conveyancing process but HSBC are not allowing this. Why were they approached?

Any conveyancing practitioner being on the HSBC conveyancing panel is obliged to disclose to HSBC of any variations to the purchase price. If you were to refuse your property lawyer to disclose the price change to HSBC then they would have to discontinue acting for you. In addition, HSBC and you would have to appoint a new solicitor for your conveyancing in Clapton.

Are all Clapton Conveyancing Quality Solicitors on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel?

Some major banks and building societies now use CQS as the kick off point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. CQS accreditation however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for solicitor practices wishing to remain on their panels.

I have today made my last payment due on my mortgage with Yorkshire BS. I assume I don't need a Clapton property lawyer on the Yorkshire BS panel to discharge the mortgage at the Land Registry. Am I right?

If you have finished paying off your Yorkshire BS 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 Yorkshire BS mortgage from the register. Yorkshire BS, 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:

1. but are not moving to another property
2. where Yorkshire BS has sent the Land Registry the discharge electronically, and
3. Yorkshire BS has instructed the Land Registry to do so

After weeks of negotiation I have agreed a price on an apartment in Clapton. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their solicitor. I paid an on account payment of £150. Shortly after, the property lawyer contacted me embarrassingly acknowledging that they were not on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?

You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Yorkshire BS panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.

I understand that there are debates on Chancel Insurance on online forums. Am I compelled to take this when buying a residence in Clapton? or Apparently there is a law dating back centuries that could mean that owners of property residing in a parish church boundary will be compelled to pay for repairs to the chancel within the church. Is this relevant for conveyancing in Clapton?

Unless a previous acquisition of the property took place post 12 October 2013 you can take it that lawyers conducting conveyancing in Clapton to continue to propose a a chancel search and or chancel repair liability insurance.

Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a property I put an offer in last month in what was supposed to be a quick, no chain conveyancing. Clapton is the location of the property. Is there any advice you can give?

Flying freeholds in Clapton are rare but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Clapton you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds very carefully. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Clapton may decide that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold premises.

Do banks and building societies provide you with an approved list of Clapton solicitors? How do you know who is on the lender conveyancing panel?

Clapton law firm practices and firms carrying out conveyancing in Clapton themselves provide us confirmation that they are on the lender conveyancing panel as opposed to being supplied with a list from the mortgage company directly.