Our grandson is in the process of securing a new build apartment in Kirkby Lonsdale with a mortgage from HSBC. His solicitor has said that there is a delay in completing the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. This document is news to me - what is it and who needs sight of it?

The document is intended to provide information to the main parties engaged in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the HSBC conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the valuer when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the HSBC conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.

We are buying a house and need a conveyancing solicitor in Kirkby Lonsdale who is on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a conveyancing firm?

Our service is limited to being a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Yorkshire BS . We don't recommend any particular firms conducting conveyancing in Kirkby Lonsdale.

I used Arc property Solicitors a few years past for my conveyancing in Kirkby Lonsdale. Now, I need the documents however cannot find the solicitor. What do I do?

Do call the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to help locate your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Kirkby Lonsdale of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously used, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold element on a house I have offered on two weeks back in what was supposed to be a straight forward, chain free conveyancing. Kirkby Lonsdale is where the house is located. Can you offer any assistance?

Flying freeholds in Kirkby Lonsdale are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Kirkby Lonsdale you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds very carefully. Your mortgage company may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Kirkby Lonsdale may determine that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.

I am a negotiator for a long established estate agent office in Kirkby Lonsdale where we see a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of short leases. I have received conflicting advice from local Kirkby Lonsdale conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process 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 buyer can avoid having 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 prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord 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 purchased a 2 bed flat in Kirkby Lonsdale, conveyancing was carried out December 2002. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Kirkby Lonsdale with an extended lease are worth £227,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2097

With only 72 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as professional fees.

The suggested premium range that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.