I today plan to offer on a house that appears to tick a lot of boxes, at a great price which is making it more attractive. I have just found out that it's a leasehold rather than freehold. I would have thought that there are particular concerns buying a house with a leasehold title in Denham. Conveyancing lawyers have are soon to be instructed. Will my lawyers set out the risks of buying a leasehold house in Denham ?

The majority of houses in Denham are freehold rather than leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local solicitor who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. We note that you are purchasing in Denham in which case you should be shopping around for a Denham conveyancing solicitor and check that they have experience in dealing with leasehold houses. As a matter of priority you will need to check the unexpired lease term. As a lessee you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want with the house. The lease will likely included provisions for example obtaining the freeholder’spermission to carry out changes to the property. It may be necessary to pay a contribution towards the upkeep of the communal areas where the house is located on an estate. Your lawyer will advise you fully on all the issues.

Back In 2006, I bought a leasehold house in Denham. Conveyancing and Platform Home Loans Ltd mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1991. The conveyancing solicitor in Denham who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the registered owner of the freehold reversion. There is no need to instruct a Denham conveyancing practitioner to do this as it can be done on-line for a few pound. Rest assured that in any event, even if this is the legitimate freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am a negotiator for a busy estate agency in Denham where we have witnessed a number of flat sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given contradictory information from local Denham conveyancing solicitors. Can you shed some light as to whether the owner of a flat can instigate the lease extension formalities for the buyer?

As long as the seller has owned the lease for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the proposed purchaser need not have to wait 2 years to extend their lease. 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.

An alternative approach is 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.

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £ 425000 garden flat in Denham in 8 days. The management company has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Landlord’s certificate, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is the landlord entitled to charge such fees for a leasehold conveyance in Denham?

Denham conveyancing on leasehold apartments nine out of ten times involves administration charges levied by management companies :

• Completing conveyancing due diligence enquiries
• Where consent is required before sale in Denham
• Supplying insurance information
• Deeds of covenant upon sale
• Registering of the assignment of the change of lessee after a sale

Your solicitor will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Denham leasehold property is £350. For Denham 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 supply answers.

I am the leaseholder of a basement flat in Denham. In the absence of agreement between myself and the freeholder, can the Leasehold valuation Tribunal make a decision on the sum due for the purchase of the freehold?

Most certainly. We can put you in touch with a Denham conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Lease Extension case for a Denham premises is Flats 8, 11 and 15 Craigmore Court 46 Murray Road in December 2013. The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenant of Flat 8 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,438 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee . The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenants of Flat 11 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,791 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee. The tribunal held that the price payable by the Applicant tenant of Flat 15 to acquire an extended lease shall be £26,638 plus £1 to the intermediate lessee . This case related to 3 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 71 years.

In relation to leasehold conveyancing in Denham what are the most frequent lease problems?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Denham. Most leases are unique and drafting errors can sometimes mean that certain sections are erroneous. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• A provision to repair to or maintain parts of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You may have a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Accord Mortgages Ltd, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Nottingham Building Society 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 does not cover certain provisions they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the purchaser to withdraw.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Denham - Examples of Queries Prior to buying

The prefered form of lease arrangement is where the freehold reversion is owned by the leaseholders. In this situation the lessees have being in charge if their destiny and notwithstanding that a managing agent is frequently employed if it is bigger than a house conversion, the managing agent employed by the leaseholders.