My wife and I are hoping to buy a house in Lancashire and have instructed a Lancashire conveyancing practice. Within the last couple of days our solicitor has forwarded the sale agreement to be signed with a detailed report in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Aldermore have this evening contacted us to inform me that they have now hit a problem as our Lancashire lawyer is not on their approved list of lawyers. What do we do from here?

When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is standard for the purchasers' solicitors to also act for the mortgage company. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your solicitor should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Lancashire solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.

Will commercial conveyancing searches disclose planned roadworks that may impact a commercial property in Lancashire?

Many commercial conveyancing solicitors in Lancashire 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 Lancashire. The search result sets out definitive data 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 Lancashire.

For every commercial conveyancing transaction in Lancashire it is crucial to investigate the adoption status of roads surrounding a site. Failure to identify developments where adoption procedures have not been dealt with adequately could result in delays to Lancashire commercial conveyancing transactions as well as pose a risk to future intentions for the site. These searches are not conducted for domestic conveyancing in Lancashire.

It has been 4 months following my purchase conveyancing in Lancashire completed. I have checked the Land Registry website which shows that I paid £150,000 when infact I paid £215,000. Why the discrepancy?

The price paid figure is taken from the application to register the purchase. It is the figure included in the Transfer (the legal deed which transfers the premises from one person to the other) and referred to as the 'consideration' or purchase price. You can report an error in the price paid figure using the LR online form. In most cases errors result from typos so at first glance the figure. Do report it so they can double check and advise.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Lancashire where we see a number of flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Lancashire conveyancing solicitors. Please can you clarify whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser can avoid having to wait 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 sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 invested in buying a garden flat in Lancashire, conveyancing was carried out 9 years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Similar properties in Lancashire with a long lease are worth £197,000. The ground rent is £55 charged once a year. The lease expires on 21st October 2078

With just 54 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £32,300 and £37,400 plus professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs without more detailed investigations. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

I today plan to offer on a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great figure which is making it more attractive. I have since been informed that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Lancashire. Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Lancashire ?

The majority of houses in Lancashire are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer used to dealing with such properties who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are buying in Lancashire in which case you should be looking for a Lancashire conveyancing practitioner and check that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to conduct alterations. You may also be required to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the house is located on an estate. Your solicitor should advise you fully on all the issues.