I am hoping to exchange soon on a ground floor flat in Great Sankey. Conveyancing solicitors have said that they will have a report out to me on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

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

• The unexpired lease term You should be advised as what happens when the lease expires, and informed of the importance of the 80 year mark
• Details of the parties to the lease, for example these could be the leaseholder (you), head lessor, freeholder
• You should 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.
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your property and do you know what it means in practice?
• What the implications are if you breach a clause of your lease?

I’m about to sell my ground floor flat in Great Sankey.Conveyancing has not commenced but I have just had a yearly service 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 today plan to offer on a house that seems to be perfect, at a reasonable price which is making it more attractive. I have subsequently found out that it's a leasehold as opposed to freehold. I am assuming that there are issues buying a house with a leasehold title in Great Sankey. Conveyancing solicitors have are soon to be appointed. Will they explain the issues?

Most houses in Great Sankey are freehold and not leasehold. In this scenario it’s worth having a local conveyancer who is familiar with the area can help the conveyancing process. It is clear that you are purchasing in Great Sankey in which case you should be looking for a Great Sankey conveyancing solicitor and be sure that they are used to advising on leasehold houses. First you will need to check the number of years remaining. Being a leaseholder you will not be entirely free to do whatever you want to the property. The lease comes with conditions for example requiring the freeholder’spermission to carry out alterations. It may be necessary to pay a maintenance charge towards the maintenance of the estate where the property is part of an estate. Your conveyancer will appraise you on the various issues.

I've recently bought a leasehold flat in Great Sankey. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

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 be sure 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 am employed by a busy estate agent office in Great Sankey where we have experienced a few leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Great Sankey conveyancing solicitors. Please can you confirm 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 start the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. This means that the buyer can avoid having 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 before, or simultaneously with completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder 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.

Great Sankey Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - A selection of Queries before buying

Please note if it is less than eighty years it will affect the salability of the apartment. Check with your mortgage company that they are willing to to proceed given the lease term. A short lease means that you will most likely need a lease extension sooner rather than later and it is worth finding out what this will be. For most Great Sankeylease extensions you would need to own the residence for two years in order to be eligible to extend the lease.