I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Cheetham Hill. Before I set the wheels in motion I require certainty as to the remaining lease term.

Assuming the lease is registered - and almost all are in Cheetham Hill - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

My wife and I may need to rent out our Cheetham Hill garden flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Cheetham Hill conveyancing practice in 2003 but they have since shut and we did not have the foresight to get any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

A small minority of properties in Cheetham Hill do contain a provision to say that subletting is only permitted with prior consent from the landlord. The landlord cannot unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to review references. Experience suggests that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting permission.

I only have Sixty One years left on my flat in Cheetham Hill. I now want to get lease extension but my freeholder is can not be found. What options are available to me?

If you qualify, under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 you can apply to the County Court for an order to dispense with the service of the initial notice. This will enable the lease to be extended by the Court. However, you will be required to prove that you have done all that could be expected to track down the freeholder. For most situations an enquiry agent would be helpful to carry out a search and prepare a report to be used as evidence that the landlord is indeed missing. It is advisable to get professional help from a solicitor both on devolving into the landlord’s disappearance and the application to the County Court overseeing Cheetham Hill.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Cheetham Hill. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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 ensure 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).

Completion in due on the disposal of our £ 275000 garden flat in Cheetham Hill next week. The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, building insurance schedule and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Cheetham Hill?

Cheetham Hill conveyancing on leasehold maisonettes more often than not requires the purchaser’s solicitor submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer these enquiries the majority will be willing to do so. They are at liberty levy a reasonable charge for responding to questions or supplying documentation. There is no set fee. The average costs for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it exceeds £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that you have no choice but to pay whatever is demanded if you want to sell the property.

I own a split level flat in Cheetham Hill, conveyancing was carried out half a dozen years ago. Can you please calculate a probable premium for a statutory lease extension? Equivalent flats in Cheetham Hill with an extended lease are worth £262,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £45 levied per year. The lease ends on 21st October 2098

With just 72 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to span between £9,500 and £11,000 plus plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide a more accurate figure without more detailed due diligence. Do not use this information in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action based on this information before getting professional advice.