Back In 2000, I bought a leasehold flat in Bury. Conveyancing and National Westminster Bank mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing solicitor in Bury who previously acted has now retired.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that this person is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Bury conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note 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 attracted to a two apartments in Bury both have approximately fifty years remaining on the leases. Will this present a problem?

There are plenty of short leases in Bury. The lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As a lease gets shorter the saleability of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more expensive to acquire a lease extension. This is why it is advisable to increase the term of the lease. It is often difficulties arise selling premises with a short lease as mortgage lenders less inclined to grant a loan on properties of this type. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We advise that you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Bury. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

In a situation where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner 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).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Bury from the perspective of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Bury can be avoided where you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the buyers conveyancers.
• The majority freeholders or managing agents in Bury charge for providing management packs for a leasehold premises. You or your lawyers should enquire as to the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for delay in leasehold conveyancing in Bury.
• Some Bury leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
• If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where there is a current dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You are still duty bound to disclose particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is better to present the dispute as over rather than unresolved.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the freehold, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Organising a re-issued share certificate is often a lengthy formality and slows down many a Bury conveyancing transaction. Where a duplicate share certificate is required, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on our sale of a £ 450000 maisonette in Bury on Friday in a week. The managing agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a leasehold conveyance in Bury?

Bury conveyancing on leasehold apartments often necessitates the buyer’s solicitor sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to address such questions the majority will be content to do so. They are entitled invoice a reasonable administration fee for responding to enquiries or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some transactions it is above £800. The management information fee demanded by the landlord must be accompanied by a synopsis of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have little option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to exchange contracts with the buyer.

I own a ground floor flat in Bury, conveyancing formalities finalised 8 years ago. Can you let me have an estimate of the premium that my landlord can legally expect in return for granting a renewal of my lease? Corresponding flats in Bury with an extended lease are worth £181,000. The ground rent is £60 per annum. The lease ends on 21st October 2099

With just 73 years remaining on your lease we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £8,600 and £9,800 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 provide the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.