You should [be sent a copy of the lease|receive a copy of the lease]

Due to exchange soon on a ground floor flat in Grangetown. Conveyancing lawyers assured me that they report fully on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Grangetown should include some of the following:

• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, landlord
• Are you allowed to have a pet in the flat?
• Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this will change in the future
• Repair and maintenance of the flat
• Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?
• What you can do if a neighbour breach a clause of their lease?

For a comprehensive list of information to be contained in your report on your leasehold property in Grangetown please enquire of your conveyancer in advance of your conveyancing in Grangetown

I have just started marketing my garden flat in Grangetown.Conveyancing is yet to be initiated but I have just had a half-yearly maintenance charge invoice – Do I pay up?

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.

What advice can you give us when it comes to appointing a Grangetown conveyancing practice to deal with our lease extension?

If you are instructing a conveyancer for lease extension works (regardless if they are a Grangetown conveyancing firm) it is imperative that he or she should be familiar with the legislation and specialises in this area of work. We advise that you make enquires with several firms including non Grangetown conveyancing practices before you instructing a firm. If the firm is ALEP accredited then that’s a bonus. Some following of questions might be useful:

• How familiar is the practice with lease extension legislation?
• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

All being well we will complete our sale of a £ 350000 flat in Grangetown next Friday . The managing agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is the landlord entitled to charge exorbitant fees for a leasehold conveyance in Grangetown?

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

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

Your conveyancer will have no control over the level of the charges for this information but the average costs for the information for Grangetown leasehold premises is £350. For Grangetown 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 obliged to supply the information.

Are there common problems that you come across in leases for Grangetown properties?

There is nothing unique about leasehold conveyancing in Grangetown. All leases is drafted differently and drafting errors can result in certain provisions are missing. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
• A duty to insure the building
• A provision for the recovery of money spent for the benefit of another party.
• Maintenance charge proportions which don’t add up to the correct percentage

You will have difficulties when selling your property if you have a defective lease primarily because it impacts on the ability to obtain a mortgage on the property. Halifax, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Alliance & Leicester all have express requirements 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 provide security, forcing the buyer to withdraw.

Grangetown Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Questions you should consider Prior to buying

Is the freehold reversion owned jointly by the leaseholders? What is the name of the managing agents?