My wife and I own a semi-detached Victorian house in Flint. Conveyancing practitioner acted for me and Virgin Money. I happened to do a free search for it on the Land Registry database and I saw two entries: the first freehold, another for leasehold with the exact same address. Is it worth asking Virgin Money to clarify?

You need to read the Freehold register you have again and check the Charges Register as there may be mention of a lease. The best way to be sure that you are also the registered proprietor of the leasehold and freehold title as well is to check (£3). It is not completely unheard of in Flint and other locations in the country and poses no real issues for owners other than when they buy they have to account for both freehold and leasehold interests when dealing with mortgage companies. You can also question the situation with your conveyancing lawyer who conducted the purchase.

I have been on the look out for a leasehold apartment up to £235,500 and identified one round the corner in Flint I like with a park and railway links nearby, however it's only got 52 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Flint for this price, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error buying a lease with such few years left?

Should you need a home loan the shortness of the lease may be an issue. Discount the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the existing owner has owned the property for a minimum of 2 years you may request that they start the process of the extension and then assign it to you. You can add 90 years to the existing lease term with a zero ground rent applied. You should consult your conveyancing solicitor concerning this.

I have been sourcing a conveyancing lawyer in Flint for my home move. Is there any facility to check a firm’s record with the legal regulator?

You can read presented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) decisions stemming from inquisitions from 2008 onwards. Go to Check a solicitor's record. To find information about the period before 1 January 2008, or to check a firm's history, ring 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and 09.30 - 18.00 Tuesday. For callers outside the UK, call +44 (0)121 329 6800. The SRA sometimes recorded call for training reasons.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agent office in Flint where we see a few flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Flint conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm whether the owner of a flat can start the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

I invested in buying a split level flat in Flint, conveyancing was carried out in 2011. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Corresponding properties in Flint with a long lease are worth £185,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 yearly. The lease runs out on 21st October 2086

You have 61 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £18,100 and £20,800 plus legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you a more accurate figure in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.

There are numerous properties in Flint on unadopted roads. My husband and I are buying one such house. What are the advantages and disadvantages of purchasing a house on a privately owned road?

Flint conveyancing firms are well versed in conveyancing propertieson unadopted roads. Your conveyancer should investigate Land Registry data to identify any rights or responsibilities. In many cases there is a residents association that owners pay into to maintain the road. Where there is one, the road will likely be maintained and appear better than publicly owned.