I have just started marketing my ground floor apartment in Bolton.Conveyancing lawyers have not yet been instructed but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – Do I pay up?

It best that you discharge the service charge as normal because all ground rent and service charges will be apportioned on completion, so you will be reimbursed by the buyer for the period running from after the completion date to the next payment date. Most managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until the service charges have been paid and are up to date so it is important for both buyer and seller for the seller to show that they are up to date. Having a clear account will assist your cause and will leave you no worse off financially.

I've found a house that seems to be perfect, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have since been informed that the title is leasehold as opposed to freehold. I would have thought that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Bolton. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be appointed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Bolton ?

The majority of houses in Bolton are freehold and not leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Bolton so you should seriously consider looking for a Bolton conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease comes with conditions for example obtaining the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. You may also be required to pay a maintenance charge towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the property is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will advise you fully on all the issues.

Back In 2006, I bought a leasehold flat in Bolton. Conveyancing and Coventry Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Bolton who previously acted has long since retired.Any advice?

First contact HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. You do not need to instruct a Bolton conveyancing practitioner to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am employed by a busy estate agency in Bolton where we see a few flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Bolton conveyancing solicitors. Could you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed before, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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 buyer.

What advice can you give us when it comes to finding a Bolton conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Bolton conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you talk with several firms including non Bolton conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• How familiar is the firm with lease extension legislation?
• What are the charges for lease extension conveyancing?

Bolton Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to Purchasing

The prefered form of lease arrangement is a share of the freehold. In this arrangement the leaseholders have control and even though a managing agent is frequently employed if the building is larger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders. Please tell me if there are any major works in the planning that will likely add a premium to the service charges? How many of the leaseholders are in arrears for their maintenance charge payments?