Planning to exchange soon on a garden flat in Dronfield. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

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

• How long the lease is You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and informed of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years
• Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?
• Whether the lease restricts you from subletting the flat, or working from home
• You must be told what constitutes a Nuisance in the lease
• Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?
• Responsibility for repairing the window frames

I have just started marketing my ground floor apartment in Dronfield.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a quarterly service charge demand – should I leave it to the buyer to sort out?

The sensible thing to do is pay 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 unless 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.

Back In 2003, I bought a leasehold house in Dronfield. Conveyancing and Birmingham Midshires mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone claiming to own the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a demand for arrears of ground rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing solicitor in Dronfield who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First contact the Land Registry to be sure that this person is indeed the new freeholder. You do not need to instruct a Dronfield conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. Rest assured 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 am a negotiator for a reputable estate agent office in Dronfield where we have witnessed a few leasehold sales derailed as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have been given inconsistent advice from local Dronfield conveyancing firms. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can initiate the lease extension process 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 commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to sit tight for 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 simultaneously with 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 buyer.

Can you provide any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Dronfield with the aim of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Dronfield can be reduced if you get in touch lawyers as soon as your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation which will be required by the purchasers’ representatives.
• Many freeholders or Management Companies in Dronfield levy fees for supplying management packs for a leasehold property. You or your lawyers should find out the actual amount of the charges. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus reducing delays. The typical amount of time it takes to receive management information is three weeks. It is the most frequent cause of delay in leasehold conveyancing in Dronfield.
• Some Dronfield leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, it would be prudent to place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should ensure that you have the original share document. Obtaining a duplicate share certificate is often a lengthy formality and slows down many a Dronfield home move. Where a reissued share is necessary, you should approach the company officers or managing agents (where relevant) for this sooner rather than later.
• You may think that you are aware of the number of years left on your lease but you should verify this by asking your conveyancers. A purchaser's lawyer will not be happy to advise their client to to exchange contracts if the remaining number of years is below 75 years. In the circumstances it is essential at an early stage that you consider whether the lease for your property needs extending. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your premises on the market for sale.

I inherited a studio flat in Dronfield, conveyancing was carried out 6 years ago. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Similar properties in Dronfield with a long lease are worth £170,000. The average or mid-range amount of ground rent is £50 yearly. The lease ends on 21st October 2092

With just 66 years unexpired we estimate the premium for your lease extension to be between £10,500 and £12,000 as well as professional fees.

The figure that we have given is a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we are not able to provide the actual costs without more detailed due diligence. Do not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There may be additional issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. You should not move forward based on this information before getting professional advice.