I own a leasehold house in Chorlton. Conveyancing and Nottingham Building Society mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1998. The conveyancing practitioner in Chorlton who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Chorlton 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 rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 no more than 6 years of rent can be collected.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Chorlton. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before my ownership?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part 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).

What advice can you give us when it comes to choosing a Chorlton conveyancing practice to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a property lawyer for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Chorlton conveyancing firm) it is imperative that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you speak with several firms including non Chorlton conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be of use:

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then why not?
• Can they put you in touch with client in Chorlton who can give a testimonial?

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the sale of our £ 350000 apartment in Chorlton next Thursday . The landlords agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, building insurance schedule and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge an administration fee for a flat conveyance in Chorlton?

Chorlton conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually necessitates the buyer’s lawyer sending questions for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to answer these enquiries most will be willing to do so. They are entitled invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is £350, in some situations it is in excess of £800. The administration charge levied by the landlord must be accompanied by a summary of entitlements and obligations in relation to administration fees, without which the charge is not strictly payable. In reality you have little option but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to complete the sale of your home.

Are there common defects that you come across in leases for Chorlton properties?

Leasehold conveyancing in Chorlton is not unique. Most leases are individual and legal mistakes in the legal wording can sometimes mean that certain provisions are wrong. For example, if your lease is missing any of the following, it could be defective:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain elements of the property
• Insurance obligations
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

A defective lease can cause issues when trying to sell a property as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. National Westminster Bank, The Mortgage Works, and Britannia all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. Where a lender has been advised by their lawyers that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, forcing the purchaser to withdraw.

I purchased a ground floor flat in Chorlton, conveyancing formalities finalised 4 years ago. How much will my lease extension cost? Similar properties in Chorlton with a long lease are worth £254,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced every year. The lease ceases on 21st October 2106

You have 80 years left to run we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £12,400 and £14,200 plus legals.

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 comprehensive due diligence. Do not use this information in tribunal or court proceedings. There are no doubt other concerns that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.