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

Assuming the lease is registered - and 99.9% are in Cranfield - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars 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.

I today plan to offer on a house that seems to tick a lot of boxes, at a reasonable figure which is making it all the more appealing. I have just discovered that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I am assuming that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Cranfield. Conveyancing solicitors have not yet been instructed. Will they explain the issues?

The majority of houses in Cranfield are freehold rather than leasehold. This is one of the situations where having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are buying in Cranfield so you should seriously consider shopping around for a Cranfield conveyancing practitioner and be sure that they are used to dealing with leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. As a tenant you will not be at liberty to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the landlord’spermission to conduct changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a service charge towards the upkeep of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your lawyer should advise you fully on all the issues.

I own a leasehold house in Cranfield. Conveyancing and HSBC 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 1995. The conveyancing practitioner in Cranfield who previously acted has long since retired.What should I do?

First contact the Land Registry to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Cranfield conveyancing lawyer to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for a few pound. 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 work for a busy estate agent office in Cranfield where we have experienced a few flat sales derailed due to leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received contradictory information from local Cranfield conveyancing solicitors. Please can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can commence the lease extension formalities for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner 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 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 prior to, or simultaneously with completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

Our conveyancer has advised that he intends to complete and exchange simultaneously on the disposal of our £ 250000 apartment in Cranfield next week. The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and previous years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge exorbitant fees for a flat conveyance in Cranfield?

For the majority of leasehold sales in Cranfield conveyancing will involve, questions about the management of a building inevitably needing to be answered directly by the freeholder or its agent, this includes :

• Answering pre-contract questions
• Where consent is required before sale in Cranfield
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your lawyer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Cranfield leasehold property is £350. For Cranfield 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 inherited a 1 bedroom flat in Cranfield, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2010. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Comparable properties in Cranfield with an extended lease are worth £260,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 invoiced annually. The lease comes to an end on 21st October 2087

With 61 years remaining on your lease the likely cost is going to be between £20,900 and £24,200 plus 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 cannot give you the actual costs in the absence of detailed due diligence. Do not use this information 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 want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward placing reliance on this information before getting professional advice.