My partner and I are acquiring a newly built flat in Belper and my solicitor is telling me that she is duty bound to the lender to disclose incentives from the seller. I am on a tight deadline to sign contracts and my preference is not to delay 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 mortgage company panel is to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook specifications. The CML Conveyancing Handbook requires that your lawyer have the appropriate Disclosure of Incentive form completed by the developer and accepted by your lender.

Despite weeks of looking the Title Certificate and documents to my home are lost. The lawyers who did the conveyancing in Belper 4 years ago have long since closed. What do I do?

Assuming you have a registered title the details of your ownership will be recorded by HMLR under a Title Number. It is possible to perform a search at the Land Registry, find your house and secure up to date copies of the Registered Entries for less than a fiver. Where the property is Leasehold then the Land Registry will usually retain a file duplicate of the Registered Lease and again, a copy can be ordered for twenty pounds.

I am purchasing a new build house in Belper with a loan from Godiva Mortgages Ltd. The sellers refused to budge the price so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The sale representative suggested that I not to tell my conveyancer about the side-deal as it will impact my mortgage with the lender. Should I keep quiet?.

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 does commercial conveyancing in Belper cover?

Belper conveyancing for business premises covers a wide array of services, provided by regulated solicitors, relating to business premises. For example, this area of conveyancing can cover the sale or purchase of freehold business premises or, more usually, the assignment of existing leases or the drafting of new leasing arrangements. Commercial conveyancing solicitors can also offer advice on the sale of business assets, commercial mortgages and the termination of tenancies.

I am thinking of appointing a conveyancing practitioner in Belper for my purchase. Is it possible to check a firm’s record with the profession’s regulator?

One can review presented Solicitor Regulator Association (SRA) decisions arising from investigations commenced on or after Jan 2008. Visit Check a solicitor's record. For information Pre 2008, or to check a solicitors history, call 0870 606 2555, 08.00 - 18.00 any week day save for Tuesday when lines open at 9.30am. International callers, use +44 (0)121 329 6800. The regulator sometimes recorded telephone calls for training requirements.