My wife and I are refinancing our flat in Banbury with Lloyds. We have a son 19 who lives with us. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. Our lawyer has now e-mailed a document for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the apartment is forfeited by the lender. I have a couple of concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Lloyds conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we bought 5 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?

First, rest assured that your Lloyds conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Lloyds. This is solely used to protect Lloyds if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Lloyds had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.

Do the Building Society Association intend to launch a search tool with a view to list law firms on the Earl Shilton BS conveyancing panel for instance in Banbury?

We are not aware of any plans on the part of the BSA to develop such a tool.

Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a property I put an offer in last month in what should have been a straight forward, no chain conveyancing. Banbury is where the house is located. Is there any guidance you can give?

Flying freeholds in Banbury are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Banbury you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds diligently. Your lender may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Banbury 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 property.

We're new on the property ladder - agreed a price, yet the selling agent informed us that the vendor will only proceed if we instruct their recommended lawyers as they want an ‘expedited deal’. We would rather use a high street conveyancer used to conveyancing in Banbury

We suspect that the seller is not behind this ultimatum. If they desire ‘a quick sale', turning down a motivated buyer is likely to cause more damage than good. Bypass the agents and go straight to the owners and make the point that (a)you are genuine buyers (b)you are ready to go, with finances arranged © you are unencumbered (d) you intend to proceed fast (e)however you intend to use your preferred Banbury conveyancing firm - not the ones that will provide their negotiator at the agency a referral fee or achieve conveyancing figures demanded by HQ.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have since found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Banbury. Conveyancing advisers have not yet been appointed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Banbury ?

Most houses in Banbury are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area who can help the conveyancing process. it is apparent that you are buying in Banbury so you should seriously consider looking for a Banbury conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to carry out changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your conveyancer should report to you on the legal implications.

I bought a 1st floor flat in Banbury, conveyancing was carried out in 1995. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar properties in Banbury with over 90 years remaining are worth £201,000. The ground rent is £45 yearly. The lease runs out on 21st October 2089

With just 65 years unexpired we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £13,300 and £15,400 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.