I am expecting a mortgage offer from Lloyds. I would like to retain the legal services of a Licensed Conveyancer in Kimberley. Does the Lloyds Conveyancing panel allow for Licensed Conveyancers?

The Lloyds conveyancing panel is, like many other lenders, associated to the Council or Mortgage Lenders or Building Society Association, open to Licensed Conveyancers regulated by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.

My fiance and I are buying a newbuild flat in Kimberley with a homeloan from Skipton Building Society.We use our Kimberley conveyancing solicitor but Skipton Building Society advised that he's not on their "panel". we are left little option but to use a Skipton Building Society panel lawyer or keep our local solicitor and pay for a Skipton Building Society panel lawyer to act for them. This seems very unfair; Can we not simply insist that Skipton Building Society use our lawyer?

Unfortunately,no. The loan issued to you is subject to its various provisions, one of which will be that lawyers must be on the Skipton Building Society conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of solicitors 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. A further alternative is for your lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Skipton Building Society

Should commercial conveyancing searches reveal proposed roadworks that could impact a commercial property in Kimberley?

Its becoming the norm that commercial conveyancing solicitors in Kimberley will carry out a SiteSolutions Highways report as it dramatically cuts the time that conveyancers invest in investigating accurate data on highways that impact buildings and development assets in Kimberley. The search result provides definitive information on the adoption status of roads, footpaths and verges, as well as the implication of traffic schemes and the rights of way surrounding a commercial development sites in Kimberley.

For each commercial conveyancing transaction in Kimberley it is crucial to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. The absence of identifying developments where adoption procedures have not been dealt with adequately could cause delays to Kimberley commercial conveyancing transactions as well as pose a risk to future plans for the site. These searches are not ordered for domestic conveyancing in Kimberley.

Last April I purchased a leasehold house in Kimberley. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I own a 1st floor flat in Kimberley, conveyancing having been completed January 2006. How much will my lease extension cost? Corresponding properties in Kimberley with a long lease are worth £175,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £65 levied per year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2083

With only 58 years unexpired the likely cost is going to range between £23,800 and £27,400 plus costs.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

We are in the process of acquiring a house in Kimberley. Conveyancing is not complete but we would like keep the amount we are are purchasing for a secret from sites such as Nestoria. How can this be done?

The Land Registry as a matter of law bound to specify price paid information on a register of the title for domestic properties countrywide which includes homes in Kimberley. The register of title is a public document, so HM Land Registry would be breaking the law excluded specific properties such as your one in Kimberley.

In essence you can ask HMLR to hide the amount paid data but the response would be in the negative.