Back In 2001, I bought a leasehold house in Aylsham. Conveyancing and Clydesdale mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing practitioner in Aylsham who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to incur the fees of a Aylsham conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Aylsham. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. A critical element of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

I work for a busy estate agency in Aylsham where we have experienced a few flat sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given conflicting advice from local Aylsham conveyancing solicitors. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to kick-start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to appointing a Aylsham conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Aylsham conveyancing firm) it is most important that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you make enquires with several firms including non Aylsham conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £350000 maisonette in Aylsham next week. The management company has quoted £372 for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Aylsham?

Aylsham conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually requires the buyer’s solicitor sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address these enquiries most will be content to do so. They are at liberty levy a reasonable administration fee for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some transactions it is above £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the charge is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has little choice but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

I purchased a 2 bed flat in Aylsham, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Comparable flats in Aylsham with an extended lease are worth £214,000. The ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease runs out on 21st October 2096

With 70 years left to run the likely cost is going to be between £13,300 and £15,400 as well as 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 are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive due diligence. You should not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not take any other action placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.

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Lease Extensions in Aylsham