I am in need of some leasehold conveyancing in Hawes. Before I set the wheels in motion I would like to find out the remaining lease term.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Hawes - then the leasehold title will always include the basic details 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.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold house in Hawes. Conveyancing and The Mortgage Works mortgage are in place. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. It included a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1992. The conveyancing solicitor in Hawes who acted for me is not around.Do I pay?

First contact HMLR to make sure that the individual claiming to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. It is not necessary to incur the fees of a Hawes conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note 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.

Last month I purchased a leasehold property in Hawes. Do I have any liability for service charges relating to a period prior to completion of my purchase?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous owner and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. Strange as it may seem, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part 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).

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

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

• If the firm is not ALEP accredited then what is the reason?

If all goes to plan we aim to complete our sale of a £475000 garden flat in Hawes in just under a week. The landlords agents has quoted £312 for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years statements of service charge. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Hawes?

Hawes conveyancing on leasehold flats usually requires the buyer’s solicitor submitting enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is under no legal obligation to address these enquiries the majority will be content to do so. They are entitled invoice a reasonable administration fee for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average costs for the paperwork that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some situations it exceeds £800. The administration charge required by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in respect of administration fees, without which the charge is not strictly payable. Reality however dictates that one has no choice but to pay whatever is requested of you if you want to sell the property.

Hawes Conveyancing for Leasehold Flats - Examples of Questions you should consider before buying

This question is helpful as a) areas may cause problems in the block as the common areas may start to deteriorate where repairs are not paid for b) if the leaseholders have a dispute with the running of the building you will wish to know about it Does the lease have onerous restrictions? You should be aware if it is no more than 80 years it will impact the marketability of the apartment. Check with your lender that they are willing to go ahead with the loan given the lease term. A short lease means that you will most likely require a lease extension sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of how much this would cost. For most Haweslease extensions you would need to own the residence for a couple of years in order to be entitled to carry out a lease extension.

Other Topics

Lease Extensions in Hawes