You should [be sent a copy of the lease|receive a copy of the lease]

Due to sign contracts shortly on a ground floor flat in Chalfont St Giles. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they report fully next week. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Chalfont St Giles should include some of the following:

• The length of the lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and informed of the importance of the 80 year mark
• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
• Will you be prohibited or prevented from having pets in the property?
• Whether your lease has a provision for a reserve fund?
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.
• 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

For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Chalfont St Giles please enquire of your lawyer in ahead of your conveyancing in Chalfont St Giles

I have just started marketing my basement apartment in Chalfont St Giles.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a quarterly service charge demand – what should I do?

It best that you clear 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. This will smooth the conveyancing process.

I am employed by a reputable estate agency in Chalfont St Giles where we see a number of flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Chalfont St Giles conveyancing firms. Can you confirm whether the vendor of a flat can initiate 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 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 wait 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.

Alternatively, it may be possible 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 buyer.

What are your top tips when it comes to appointing a Chalfont St Giles conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Chalfont St Giles conveyancing firm) it is most important that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We advise that you make enquires with several firms including non Chalfont St Giles conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions could be of use:

• How experienced is the firm with lease extension legislation?
• What are the costs for lease extension conveyancing?

If all goes to plan we aim to complete the sale of our £ 200000 flat in Chalfont St Giles next week. The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Chalfont St Giles?

Chalfont St Giles conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually results in administration charges levied by management companies :

• Addressing pre-exchange enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Chalfont St Giles
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Chalfont St Giles leasehold premises is £350. For Chalfont St Giles 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 provide answers.

I own a basement flat in Chalfont St Giles, conveyancing having been completed in 2007. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Similar properties in Chalfont St Giles with over 90 years remaining are worth £181,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 charged once a year. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2104

With 78 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £10,500 and £12,000 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be taken into account and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you move forward placing reliance on this information without first seeking the advice of a professional.