We are acquiring a brand new apartment in Widnes and my solicitor is informing me that she is duty bound to the bank to disclose incentives from the builder. I am under pressure to exchange contracts and I don't want to prolong deal. Is my lawyer right?

You should not exchange unless you have been advised to do so by your conveyancing practitioner. 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.

We note that you have a post code search directory identifying solicitors on the Principality conveyancing panel. Do companies pay you a commission if I appoint them for our own conveyancing in Widnes?

We are a listing service only for law firms wishing to communicate if they are on the Principality conveyancing panel or other lender panels. We do not charge referral fees to any conveyancer that you subsequently appoint for your conveyancing in Widnes.

What is the difference between a licensed conveyancer and conveyancing solicitor in Widnes

There are many recorded licenced Conveyancers in Widnes and Solicitor firms in Widnes who provide Conveyancing services We would stress that both are supervised by regulatory bodies with both specialising in the legal work in transferring property. Both can conduct associated property related work such as remortgage conveyancing, lease extensions and transfer of equity conveyancing.

I have decided to exercise my right to buy my property in Widnes off the council. I have a mortgage offer with Nationwide. Conveyancing is not something I have any knowledge of. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should use one. Any advice?

It is not advisable to proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event, if you are getting a mortgage with Nationwide, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Nationwide conveyancing panel.

I am selling my apartment. I had a double glazing fitted in October 2010, but did not receive a FENSA certificate or Building Regulation Certificate. My buyer's lender, Bank of Ireland are being difficult. The Widnes solicitor who is on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel is saying indemnity insurance will be fine but Bank of Ireland are insisting on a building regulation certificate. Why do Bank of Ireland have a conveyancing panel if they don't accept advice from them?

It is probably the case that Bank of Ireland have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Bank of Ireland may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing was correctly and safely installed. The indemnity insurance merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.

I am buying a new build house in Widnes with the aid of help to buy. The developers would not budge the price so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The estate agent suggested that I not reveal to my conveyancer about the extras as it will impact my loan with the bank. Is this normal?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder 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 Widnes lease unacceptable for security purposes?

Leasehold conveyancing in Widnes is not unique. All leases are individual 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:

Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You will encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, Leeds Building Society, and TSB all have very detailed requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to provide security, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

Widnes Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should ask before Purchasing

You should be aware that where the lease has fewer than eighty years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the apartment. Check with your mortgage company that they are willing to lend given the lease term. A short lease means that you will most likely have to extend the lease at some point and you need to have some idea of how much this will be. Remember, in most cases you would be be obliged to have been the owner of the premises for 24 months in order to be entitled to extend the lease. Generally speaking the cost for major works are not built into the maintenance charges, albeit that there some managing agents in Widnes require leasehold owners to pay into a sinking fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance. How many years remain on the lease?