Due to complete next month on a ground floor flat in Cambourne. Conveyancing lawyers inform me that they are sending me a report within the next couple of days. What should I be looking out for?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Cambourne should include some of the following:

• The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and aware of the importance of the 80 year mark
• Are you allowed to have a pet in the flat?
• Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future
• An explanation as to the provision in the lease to pay service charges - with regard to both the building, and the more general rights a leaseholder has
• Whether your lease has a provision for a sinking fund?
• Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
• The landlord’s obligations to repair and maintain the building. It is important that you know who is responsible for the repair and maintenance of every part of the building

I have just appointed agents to market my garden flat in Cambourne.Conveyancing solicitors are to be appointed soon but I have just received a half-yearly service charge demand – what should I do?

The sensible thing to do is pay 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 management companies 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.

Back In 2004, I bought a leasehold house in Cambourne. Conveyancing and Virgin Money mortgage organised. 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 1997. The conveyancing solicitor in Cambourne who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First make enquiries of the Land Registry to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is in fact the registered owner of the freehold reversion. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Cambourne conveyancing solicitor 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 legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Cambourne where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales derailed due to short leases. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Cambourne conveyancing firms. Please can you shed some light as to whether the vendor of a flat can initiate the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

As long as the seller has been the owner 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. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to sit tight for 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

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.

Do you have any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Cambourne with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• A significant proportion of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Cambourne can be reduced if you appoint lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ lawyers.
• The majority freeholders or Management Companies in Cambourne charge for providing management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack sought on or before finding a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most usual cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Cambourne.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s permission? Have you, for example laid down wooden flooring? Most leases in Cambourne state that internal structural alterations or laying down wooden flooring calls for a licence from the Landlord approving such alterations. Where you dont have the approvals to hand you should not communicate with the landlord without checking with your conveyancer before hand.
• If there is a history of conflict with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being marketed. The purchasers and their solicitors will be reluctant to purchase a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge 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 will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic rather than unresolved.
• If you are supposed to have a share in the Management Company, you should make sure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a replacement share certificate is often a time consuming formality and slows down many a Cambourne conveyancing deal. Where a duplicate share certificate is needed, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this as soon as possible.

I own a garden flat in Cambourne, conveyancing having been completed 2007. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Equivalent flats in Cambourne with over 90 years remaining are worth £230,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease runs out on 21st October 2104

You have 78 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £8,600 and £9,800 as well as legals.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed investigations. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.