My partner and I are purchasing a newly constructed duplex in Eccleston and my conveyancer is advising me that she has to the bank to reveal incentives from the seller. The Estate Agents are hassling me to exchange and I have no desire to prolong deal. is my lawyer playing by the book?

You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your . A precondition to being on a lender panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.

I am in the process of mortgaging my home in Eccleston, does my lawyer need to be on the Conveyancing panel?

There is nothing to stop you using your solicitor, but will insist on their interests being represented by a firm on their conveyancing panel. There is much more potential for delays and confusion with an additional lawyer added to the mix, and it will undoubtedly be more expensive too.

I have been told that property searches are the primary cause of hinderance in Eccleston house deals. Is this right?

The Council of Property Search Organisations (CoPSO) released conclusions of research by MoveWithUs that conveyancing searches do not feature within the common causes of delays in the conveyancing process. Searches are unlikely to feature in any slowing down conveyancing in Eccleston.

I have been on the look out for a flat up to £305k and found one close by in Eccleston I like with amenity areas and station nearby, the downside is that it's only got 52 years unexpired on the lease. There is not much else in Eccleston suitable, so just wondered if I would be making a mistake acquiring a lease with such few years left?

If you need a home loan the shortness of the lease will be a potential deal breaker. Discount the price by the amount the lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing proprietor has owned the property for a minimum of 2 years you can request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. You can add 90 years to the current lease with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor about this matter.

I purchased a studio flat in Eccleston, conveyancing formalities finalised 1995. Can you give me give me an indication of the likely cost of a lease extension? Similar properties in Eccleston with a long lease are worth £165,000. The ground rent is £45 per annum. The lease expires on 21st October 50

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

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on a more accurate figure in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be other issues 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 without first getting professional advice.