Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Cross Hands. Before diving in I want to be sure as to the unexpired term of the lease.

If the lease is registered - and almost all are in Cross Hands - 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.

Frank (my husband) and I may need to rent out our Cross Hands basement flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We used a Cross Hands conveyancing firm in 2004 but they have closed and we did not think at the time get any guidance as to whether the lease allows us to sublet. How do we find out?

Notwithstanding that your previous Cross Hands conveyancing lawyer is no longer available you can check your lease to see if it allows you to sublet the premises. The accepted inference is that if the deeds are non-specific, subletting is permitted. There may be a precondition that you must seek consent from your landlord or other appropriate person prior to subletting. This means you not allowed to sublet without prior permission. Such consent is not allowed to be unreasonably withheld. If your lease prohibits you from subletting the property you will need to ask your landlord for their consent.

I have just started marketing my ground floor apartment in Cross Hands.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just received a yearly maintenance charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is clear the invoice 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 managing agents will not acknowledge the buyer until 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 looking at a couple of maisonettes in Cross Hands both have approximately 50 years left on the leases. should I be concerned?

A lease is a right to use the property for a period of time. As the lease shortens the value of the lease deteriorate and it becomes more costly to acquire a lease extension. For this reason it is advisable to extend the lease term. More often than not it is difficult to sell a property with a short lease as mortgage lenders may be reluctant to lend money on such properties. Lease extension can be a protracted process. We recommend you get professional assistance from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this field

What are your top tips when it comes to appointing a Cross Hands conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

If you are instructing a solicitor for your lease extension (regardless if they are a Cross Hands conveyancing firm) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We suggested that you make enquires with two or three firms including non Cross Hands conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. Where the conveyancing practice is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How experienced is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• What volume of lease extensions have they completed in Cross Hands in the last year?

I bought a leasehold flat in Cross Hands, conveyancing was carried out 7 years ago. Can you work out an approximate cost of a lease extension? Corresponding flats in Cross Hands with an extended lease are worth £250,000. The ground rent is £65 invoiced every year. The lease expires on 21st October 2088

With 62 years left to run the likely cost is going to span between £21,900 and £25,200 plus professional fees.

The suggested premium range above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to advice on the actual costs in the absence of comprehensive investigations. You should not use the figures in tribunal or court proceedings. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously want to be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Please do not take any other action placing reliance on this information before seeking the advice of a professional.