Much to our surprise we have been notified by our estate agent that my Booker solicitor is not on the lender Conveyancing panel. How can I be sure whether this is correct?

Your first step should be to call your Booker conveyancer. It is reasonable to expect your lawyer to inform you what has happened. Where they are not on the panel they could put your in touch with solicitors on the conveyancing panel for your mortgage company.

Will conveyancers ask for an advanced payment for my conveyancing in Booker?

If you are buying a property in Booker your lawyer will ask you place them with monies to cover the search fees. This will be the total of the cost of the conveyancing searches. When the deposit is payable against the total price then this will be asked for immediately ahead of contracts are exchanged. Any further balance that is needed should be transferred a few days ahead of the completion date.

I am purchasing my first flat in Booker with a mortgage from . The builders refused to reduce the amount so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The estate agent advised me not disclose to my lawyer about this deal as it will put at risk my mortgage with the bank. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

Am I better off to appoint a Booker conveyancing practitioner in close proximity to the house I am purchasing? An old friend can execute the legal work but her office is over three hundred kilometers away.

The benefit of a local Booker conveyancing practice is that you can pop in to sign paperwork, hand in your identification documents and apply pressure on them where appropriate. Having local Booker know how is a plus. However it's more important to get someone that will do a good and efficient job. If you know people who used your friend and in the main were content that should surpass using an unfamiliar Booker conveyancing solicitor solely due to them being local.

I am the registered owner of a 1 bedroom flat in Booker, conveyancing having been completed 1995. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Booker with over 90 years remaining are worth £165,000. The ground rent is £45 per annum. The lease expires on 21st October 50

With just 50 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £36,100 and £41,800 as well as costs.

The figure 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. You should not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.