We are buying a 2 bedroom flat in Kidlington with a mortgage. We have a Kidlington solicitor, but the mortgage company says he's not on their "panel". It appears that we have little choice but to use one of the lender panel conveyancing practices or continue with our Kidlington conveyancer as well as pay for one of their panel ones to act for them. This seems very unfair; is there anything we can do?

Unfortunately,no. The mortgage offered to you 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 Kidlington conveyancing solicitor to apply to be on the conveyancing panel.

Please explain the implications if my lawyer’s firm is removed from the Aldermore Conveyancing panel ahead of completing my conveyancing in Kidlington?

The first thing to point out is that, this is very unlikely to happen. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have to instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by a regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit at a cost.

My partner and I are downsizing from our home in Kidlington and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a risk of it being constructed land that was not decontaminated. Any local lawyer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers are using a national conveyancing practice rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Kidlington. Having lived in Kidlington for six years we know that this is a non issue. Do we get in touch with our local Authority to obtain confirmation need.

It sounds as though you may have a conveyancing firm currently acting for you. Are they able to advise? You must enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out health insurance to cover that same illness)

I'm purchasing my first flat in Kidlington with the aid of help to buy. The developers would not move on the price so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The estate agent advised me not to tell my lawyer about this deal as it would jeopardize my mortgage with Aldermore. 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.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that appears to meet my requirements, at a great price which is making it all the more appealing. I have just found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Kidlington. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Kidlington ?

The majority of houses in Kidlington are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Kidlington in which case you should be looking for a Kidlington conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in advising on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions such as obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the maintenance of the communal areas where the property is located on an estate. Your solicitor should appraise you on the various issues.

I acquired a ground floor flat in Kidlington, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Comparable properties in Kidlington with a long lease are worth £265,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease expires on 21st October 2101

With just 76 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £8,600 and £9,800 as well as legals.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.