My partner and I are acquiring a newly constructed duplex in Syston and my lawyer is informing me that she is duty bound to the mortgage company to reveal incentives from the builder. The Estate Agents are hassling me to exchange and I have no desire to prolong matters. is my lawyer playing by the book?

You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your conveyancer. A precondition to being on a bank panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook provisions. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.

I have an AIP. The bank mentioned the loan came with free conveyancing. Is the implication that I have to use their panel solicitor as I would much rather use a local conveyancing solicitor in Syston?

You should check but the chances are that appoint one of their panel solicitors should you take up the "fee-free" deal. Call the lender to see if they offer you a cash alternative. It is not unheard for a lender to give a £250 cashback as an alternative in which case that money can go towards your preferred conveyancing solicitor near Syston.

We are intent on selling our property in Syston and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a possibility that the property was constructed on contaminated land. Any high street Syston lawyer would know that there is no such problem. For the life of me I don't know why the buyers are using a nationwide conveyancing outfit rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Syston. Having lived in Syston for many years we know of no issue. Is it a good idea to get in touch with our local Authority to obtain confirmation that there is no issue.

It would appear that you have a conveyancing firm already. Are they able to advise? You should 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 ailment)

I decided to have a survey completed on a house in Syston ahead of retaining solicitors. I have been informed that there is a flying freehold overhang to the property. Our surveyor advised that some lenders tend not grant a loan on a flying freehold premises.

It depends who your proposed lender is. Santander has different instructions for example to Halifax. Should you wish to call us we can investigate further via the appropriate lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Syston. Conveyancing may be slightly more expensive based on your lender's requirements.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Syston conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Syston conveyancing practice) it is essential that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We suggest that you speak with several firms including non Syston conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. The following questions might be of use:

If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

Syston Leasehold Conveyancing - A selection of Queries Prior to Purchasing

It would be sensible to investigate if there are any onerous restrictions in the lease. For instance plenty of leases prohibit pets being permitted in certain buildings in Syston. If you love the flatin Syston however your cat can’t live with you then you will be faced difficult determination. You should be aware that where the lease has no more than 80 years it will impact the value of the apartment. Check with your bank that they are willing to go ahead with the loan given the lease term. A short lease means that you will most likely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and it is worth finding out what this will be. For most Systonlease extensions you would be required to have owned the residence for 24 months in order to be eligible to carry out a lease extension. What is the maintenance charge and ground rent on the apartment?