My wife and I changing mortgage lender for our maisonette in Redditch with Co-operative. We have a son approaching twenty who lives at home. Our solicitor has asked us to disclose anyone over the age of 17 other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the flat is repossessed. I have two concerns (1) Is this form unique to the Co-operative conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we bought 3 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this giving up his rights to inherit the property?

On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Co-operative. This is solely used to protect Co-operative if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave. It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Co-operative had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.

I am in the process of remortgaging my apartment in Redditch, does my lawyer need to be on the Coventry BS Conveyancing panel?

There is nothing to stop you using your solicitor, but Coventry BS will insist on their interests being represented by a firm on their conveyancing panel. There is greater potential for delays and confusion with an additional lawyer added to the mix, and it will undoubtedly be more expensive too.

I have recentlybeen informed that Wolstenholmes have closed. They conducted my conveyancing in Redditch for a purchase of a leasehold apartment 18 months ago. How can I be sure that my home is not still registered in the name of the previous owner?

The easiest method to see if the premises is registered to you, you can make a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Redditch conveyancing specialists.

I am buying a new build house in Redditch benefiting from help to buy. The sellers would not move on the price so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The sale representative told me not reveal to my solicitor about this side-deal as it may affect my loan with the bank. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the developer 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.

What makes a Redditch lease defective?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Redditch. Most leases are drafted differently and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property A duty to insure the building

A defective lease will likely cause problems when trying to sell a property primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Santander, The Mortgage Works, and Clydesdale all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

I bought a split level flat in Redditch, conveyancing having been completed half a dozen years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Comparable properties in Redditch with over 90 years remaining are worth £265,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease ends on 21st October 2100

With only 75 years left to run the likely cost is going to range between £8,600 and £9,800 plus costs.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and clearly you should 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.