I'm buying a new build house in Flintshire with a mortgage from Nationwide Building Society. The builders would not budge the amount so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The property agent advised me not disclose to my conveyancer about this deal as it will jeopardize my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.

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 have been on the look out for a flat up to £195,000 and found one round the corner in Flintshire I like with a park and transport links in the vicinity, however it's only got 61 remaining years left on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Flintshire in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a lease with such few years left?

Should you need a mortgage the shortness of the lease will likely be an issue. Discount the price by the anticipated lease extension will cost if it has not already been discounted. If the current proprietor has owned the property for at least twenty four months you may ask them to start the process of the extension and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer about this.

My husband and I are FTB’s - agreed a price, but the agent advised that the vendor will only proceed if we use the agent's preferred lawyers as they want an ‘expedited deal’. My instinct tells me that we should use a high street conveyancer accustomed to conveyancing in Flintshire

It is unlikely the owners are behind this. If they want ‘a quick sale', taking such a hostile approach to a serious buyer is likely to cause more damage than good. Speak to the vendors direct and make the point that (a)you are serious purchasers (b)you are excited to move forward, with finances in place © you are unencumbered (d) you wish to move quickly (e)however you will continue to appoint your own,trusted Flintshire conveyancing firm - rather thanthe ones that will give their estate agent a commission or meet his conveyancing targets set by head office.

What makes a Flintshire lease problematic?

Leasehold conveyancing in Flintshire is not unique. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain clauses are missing. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

A duty to insure the building

A defective lease can cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, The Mortgage Works, and Britannia all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to pull out.

I acquired a 2 bed flat in Flintshire, conveyancing formalities finalised 9 years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Equivalent properties in Flintshire with an extended lease are worth £180,000. The ground rent is £65 invoiced annually. The lease finishes on 21st October 2082

You have 59 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to span between £20,900 and £24,200 plus costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered 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 seeking the advice of a professional.

I am due to consider quotes for conveyancing in Flintshire from numerous property lawyer and decide on one. Should I ask them to sit tight until I a suitable house to buy.

We suggest that you wait to ask your solicitor to commence work and apply for searches after the sales memo has been issued by the estate agent particularly as Flintshire conveyancing searches are a couple of hundred pounds.