I have just been advised by my IFA that my Leyburn solicitor is not on the mortgage company Solicitor panel. What can I do to be certain if this is indeed the case?

The first thing you need to do is to contact your Leyburn lawyer directly. It is reasonable to expect your lawyer to advise you what has happened. If they are not on the panel they could put your in touch with solicitors on the approved list of lawyers for your bank.

Our grandson is about to exchange on a new build apartment in Leyburn with a home loan from Co-operative. His conveyancer has advised him of a delay in receiving the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. What is this document - I have never come across this before?

The document is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the purchase. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Co-operative conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Co-operative conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.

At what point does exchange of contracts occur in domestic conveyancing in Leyburn and am I required to attend the conveyancers branch?

If you are near to one of the conveyancing solicitors in Leyburn you are invited in to sign documents. That being said, the firms we recommend offer countrywide coverage for conveyancing and give just as comprehensive and professional a job for you when communicating with you digitally. The executing of the contract is not the point of no return. A signed contract simply enables the firm to exchange contracts at the suitable time, which will usually be very shortly after signing. The exchange process is nowadays normally dealt with by telephone and can be very rapid, although where a long "chain" is involved, since the process requires the relevant party's solicitor (not necessarily a conveyancing solicitor in Leyburn)to be in the office available at the end of the phone to exchange contracts.

I acquired my apartment on 10 January and the transaction details is yet to be registered. Any reason for this? My conveyancing solicitor in Leyburn advises it will be dealt with in less than a month. Are properties in Leyburn particularly slow to register?

As far as conveyancing in Leyburn registration is no quicker or slower than the rest of the country. As opposed to being determined by geographic area, timescales can differ according to who lodges the application, whether there are errors and whether the Land registry must send notices to any interested parties. At present in the region of three quarters of such applications are completed within 12 days but some can be subject to protracted delays. Historically registration is effected once the buyer is living at the property thus registration formalities is not always an essential issue yet where it is urgent that the the registration takes place urgently then you or your lawyers could communicate with the Registry to express the reasoning for the application to be prioritised.

I am hoping to put an offer on a small detached house that seems to be perfect, at a reasonable figure which is making it more attractive. I have just found out that the title is leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a leasehold house in Leyburn. Conveyancing solicitors have are about to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the implications of buying a leasehold house in Leyburn ?

The majority of houses in Leyburn are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area who can assist with the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Leyburn so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Leyburn conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they have experience in transacting on leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. Being a leaseholder you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease will likely included provisions such as obtaining the landlord’sconsent to carry out alterations. You may also be required to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your solicitor will advise you fully on all the issues.

I acquired a 1st floor flat in Leyburn, conveyancing having been completed 10 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Equivalent flats in Leyburn with over 90 years remaining are worth £265,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 per annum. The lease expires on 21st October 2100

With 75 years remaining on your lease we estimate the price of your lease extension to range between £8,600 and £9,800 as well as costs.

The figure above a general guide to costs for renewing a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt additional concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward based on this information without first getting professional advice.