Me and my fiance are purchasing a 3 bedroom flat in Desford with a mortgage. We wish to retain our Desford lawyer, but the bank says she’s not on their "panel". It appears that we have no choice but to appoint one of the mortgage company panel firms or continue with our Desford property lawyer and pay for one of their panel ones to represent them. We regard this is inequitable; can we not require that the bank use our Desford lawyer ?

No, not really. Your mortgage offer is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the lender’s conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. Another option that might be available is for your Desford conveyancing lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

I am buying a new build house in Desford with a mortgage from Godiva Mortgages Ltd. The developers refused to reduce the price so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The property agent suggested that I not disclose to my lawyer about the extras as it will adversely affect my mortgage with the bank. Is this normal?.

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.

I am looking for a leasehold apartment up to £195,000 and found one near me in Desford I like with amenity areas and railway links in the vicinity, the downside is that it only has 61 remaining years left on the lease. There is not much else in Desford for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a lease with such few years left?

If you require a mortgage the shortness of the lease may be problematic. Discount the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current owner has owned the property for a minimum of 2 years you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and then assign it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the current lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor concerning this.

Should I use a Desford conveyancing lawyer who is local to the property I am hoping to buy? We have a good friend who can perform the conveyancing however his firm is located over three hundred kilometers drive away.

The primary upside of using a local Desford conveyancing firm is that you can pop in to sign paperwork, hand in your ID and apply pressure on them if necessary. They will also have local insight which is a plus. However nothing is more important than finding someone that will pull out all the stops for you. If if people you trust instructed your friend and in the main were happy that must trump using an unfamiliar Desford conveyancing lawyer just because they are round the corner.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have subsequently found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues purchasing a house with a leasehold title in Desford. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be instructed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Desford are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area who can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Desford in which case you should be shopping around for a Desford conveyancing solicitor and check that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the freeholder’sconsent to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer should report to you on the legal implications.

I am the registered owner of a 2 bed flat in Desford, conveyancing formalities finalised 3 years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Comparable flats in Desford with an extended lease are worth £175,000. The ground rent is £65 invoiced every year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2084

You have 58 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £23,800 and £27,400 plus 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 comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.