Estate agents have just been given the go-ahead to market my garden apartment in Brynford.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – what should I do?

Your conveyancing lawyer is likely to suggest that you should discharge the invoice 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 unless 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.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Brynford. Conveyancing and Accord Mortgages Ltd mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1996. The conveyancing solicitor in Brynford who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to incur the fees of a Brynford conveyancing lawyer to do this as it can be done on-line for £3. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Brynford with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Brynford can be reduced if you appoint lawyers the minute you market your property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ conveyancers.
• Many freeholders or managing agents in Brynford levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The average time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Brynford.
• If you have carried out any alterations to the premises would they have required Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Brynford state that internal structural alterations or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. Where you fail to have the consents in place do not contact the landlord without checking with your conveyancer in advance.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the Management Company, you should ensure that you hold the original share document. Arranging a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming process and frustrates many a Brynford home move. If a reissued share certificate is needed, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (if applicable) for this at the earliest opportunity.
• You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to double-check by asking your lawyers. A purchaser's conveyancer will not be happy to advise their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is under 80 years. In the circumstances it is important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease term for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

All being well we will complete the sale of our £ 175000 garden flat in Brynford on Monday in a week. The freeholder has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Brynford?

Brynford conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes nine out of ten times involves fees being levied by landlords agents :

• Answering conveyancing due diligence questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Brynford
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Brynford leasehold premises is £350. For Brynford conveyancing transactions it is customary for the seller to pay for these costs. The landlord or their agents are under no legal obligation to answer such questions most will be willing to do so - albeit often at exorbitant prices where the fees bear little relation to the work involved. Unfortunately there is no law that requires fixed charges for administrative tasks. Neither is there any legal time frame by which they are required to supply the information.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Brynford what are the most frequent lease defects?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Brynford. All leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are not included. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the property
• A duty to insure the building
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You could encounter difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Nationwide Building Society, Norwich and Peterborough Building Society, and TSB all have express requirements when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is problematic they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the buyer to pull out.

Brynford Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Queries before buying