Am I correct in assuming that the fact that my solicitor in Taunton is not identified on my mortgage company's conveyancing panel that there is a problem with the quality of his work?
That would most likely be a wrong assumption to make. There are plenty of reasonable explanations. A recent report by the solicitors regulator revealed 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The most common reasons for removal are: (1) lack of transactions (2) the lawyer is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. Should you be concerned you should simply call the Taunton conveyancing practice and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for your bank.
When it comes to mortgage companies such as Clydesdale, do Taunton property lawyers face a fee to be on the conveyancing panel?
We are not aware of any bank fees to be on their panel, although some do levy an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel submission.
Is it the case that all Taunton solicitors on the Leeds Building Society conveyancing panel are overseen by the SRA?
As solicitors, in order to be on the Leeds Building Society approved list of solicitors they would need to be overseen by the SRA. The majority of lenders do list licenced conveyancers on their panel and in such a situation the practice would be governed by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
My offer was accepted on a property in Taunton on 28/10/2025, valuation was booked 3 days later, all came back fine. Property lawyer appointed, so the only thing outstanding was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to Kent Reliance and chasing them on my offer, I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the Kent Reliance 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 Kent Reliance to deal with your lawyer's application to be on the Kent Reliance conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitor will be accepted.
I used Stirling Law several years ago for my conveyancing in Taunton. Now, I need my documents but the law firm is no longer operating. What do I do?
Do contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Taunton of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously instructed, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.
I have been on the look out for a ground for flat up to £235,500 and found one near me in Taunton I like with amenity areas and transport links nearby, the downside is that it only has 49 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Taunton suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake purchasing a lease with such few years left?
Should you need a mortgage that many years will likely be an issue. Reduce the price by the expected lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the property for at least 2 years you can ask them to commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should speak to your conveyancing solicitor regarding this.
How easy is it to use the search app to get a fee calculation from a conveyancing practitioner in Taunton on the authorised to act for my mortgage?
1st select a bank such as HSBC Bank, Skipton Building Society or Aldermore then choose your location for example Taunton. Conveyancing practices in Taunton and nationally will then be shown.
We have been informed by many family members that it may take up to two months for Taunton conveyancing to complete.This was 3 ago. The draft contract was only sent to my conveyancer a couple of days ago so does the time start running now?
You should be realistic about timescales. Conveyancing in Taunton usually takes about ten weeks. This time period is not because lawyer are slow and willfully delay matters. The amount of money involved in buying any residence is so high, the buyer’s conveyancing practitioner having to raise a wide range of enquiries, searches and further checks to protect the buyer and their lender (if there is to be a home loan) from expensive, avoidable problems. These checks involves getting information from various third parties, including other lawyer, local councils, private companies, mortgage companies. Many of these are efficient. Plenty aren't. Finally, no matter how quickly your lawyer do their work, if the people you are purchasing from or are selling to aren't ready, nothing can move forward until they are.