i am buying a new build house in Bawtry benefiting from help to buy. The sellers would not reduce the price so I negotiated 6k of fixtures and fittings instead. The estate agent advised me not reveal to my solicitor about the deal as it could adversely affect my mortgage with the bank. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

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 am looking for a ground for flat up to £245,000 and found one round the corner in Bawtry I like with open areas and railway links in the vicinity, the downside is that it only has 51 years on the lease. I can't really find anything else in Bawtry in this price bracket, so just wondered if I would be making a grave error purchasing a lease with such few years left?

If you need a mortgage the shortness of the lease may be an issue. Discount the offer by the anticipated lease extension will cost if not already taken into account. If the current proprietor has owned the premises for a minimum of 2 years you could request that they commence the lease extension formalities and pass it to you. An additional ninety years can be extended on to the existing lease and have £0 ground rent by law. You should consult your conveyancing lawyer concerning this matter.

We are one month into a residential purchase having been referred to conveyancers by the estate agent to execute conveyancing in Bawtry. I am not happy. Could you help me find new lawyers?

A solicitor would have to be really poor to suggest changing them. Has your mortgage been generated? If so you need to advise them of the new contact details and get the loan are re-sent. Your new solicitor ideally needs to be on the mortgage company approved list to avoid added fees and complications. So that should be your first question of the new solicitors. The search tool can help you find a lender approved conveyancer for your home move in Bawtry