Our conveyancer has identified a defect with the lease for the property we are purchasing in Wrexham. The seller’s lawyers have offered defective title insurance as a solution. We are happy with insurance and will cover the costs. Our lawyer has advised that he must ensure that the lender is content with this solution. Are we the client or is the mortgage company ?

The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the risk of a conflict of interest, you and the lender are the client. Your conveyancing practitioner must comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects with the lease so that the mortgage company can be afforded the opportunity to check with their valuer as to the extent that the value of the property is affected. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your property lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.

I am helping my mother sell her property in Wrexham. Will the conveyancing solicitor order an energy assessment or should I organise this?

Following the abolition of Home Information Packs, EPC’s was retained a required component of moving property. An energy performance certificate needs to be to hand in advance of the property being placed on the market. It is not something that solicitors ordinarily arrange. Where you are using a Wrexham conveyancing solicitor they might be able to arrange energy performance certificates due to their relationships with reputable Wrexham assessors

My wife and I are in the throws of looking at houses in Wrexham and I am about to put in an offer. Is it sensible to have a property lawyer on ‘stand by’? I am planning to take a home loan with Nottingham.

You should start requesting conveyancing quotes from solicitors ASAP. Once you decide who you want to use and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their details on to the estate agent. As you are getting a mortgage with Nottingham, make sure you remember to check that your lawyer is on the Nottingham conveyancing panel.

I am currently in the process of buying my council flat in Wrexham. I have a mortgage offer with Co-operative. Conveyancing is new to me. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should have 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 Co-operative, you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Co-operative conveyancing panel.

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified as part of conveyancing in Wrexham?

Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the process of conveyancing in Wrexham. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

I am purchasing my first flat in Wrexham with the aid of help to buy. The builders would not reduce the price so I negotiated £7000 of extras instead. The estate agent advised me not disclose to my solicitor about the deal as it could impact my mortgage with the lender. 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.

I have recently realised that I have Sixty One years unexpired on my flat in Wrexham. I need to extend my lease but my landlord is missing. What should I do?

On the basis that you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for for permission to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will mean that your lease can be extended by the magistrate. You will be obliged to prove that you have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. For most situations a specialist should be useful to try and locate and prepare an expert document which can be used as proof that the freeholder is indeed missing. It is wise to seek advice from a solicitor in relation to investigating the landlord’s absence and the vesting order request to the County Court overseeing Wrexham.

I purchased a 1st floor flat in Wrexham, conveyancing having been completed February 2008. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Equivalent flats in Wrexham with an extended lease are worth £186,000. The ground rent is £55 levied per year. The lease terminates on 21st October 2075

With just 52 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to range between £29,500 and £34,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The suggested premium range above 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 the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action based on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.