Having had my offer accepted I require leasehold conveyancing in Danescourt. Before I set the wheels in motion I want to be sure as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

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

Looking forward to sign contracts shortly on a leasehold property in Danescourt. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they are sending me a report on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Danescourt should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
• The total extent of the property. This will be the apartment itself but may include a roof space or cellar if applicable.
• Whether the lease restricts you from subletting the property, or having a home office for business
• You must be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
• 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.
• Responsibility for repairing the window frames
• What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease?

I've recently bought a leasehold house in Danescourt. Do I have any liability for service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

In a situation 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. 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).

I work for a busy estate agency in Danescourt where we have experienced a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Danescourt conveyancing firms. Could you confirm whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

Provided that 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. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

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 purchaser.

Can you offer any advice when it comes to choosing a Danescourt conveyancing firm to carry out our lease extension conveyancing?

When appointing a solicitor for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Danescourt conveyancing firm) it is essential that they be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of conveyancing. We recommend that you talk with two or three firms including non Danescourt conveyancing practices prior to instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then so much the better. Some following of questions might be helpful:

• What volume of lease extensions has the firm carried out in Danescourt in the last year?
• Can they put you in touch with client in Danescourt who can give a testimonial?

Danescourt Leasehold Conveyancing - Examples of Questions you should consider before buying

It would be sensible to find out if there is anything that is prohibited in the lease. For instance it is reasonably common in Danescourt leases that pets are not permitted in in a block in Danescourt. If you love the propertyin Danescourt however your dog can’t live with you then you will be presented with a difficult choice. How much is the service charge and ground rent on the apartment?